


When you smile, I fall apart

by CatL1305



Series: When you smile, I fall apart - Lams [1]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alexander is George's adopted son, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, American Politics, Angst, Bi!Eliza, Eliza is a cinnamon roll, Eliza is hired as Alex's fake girlfriend, Fluff, Gay!Alex, George is the President of the US, John Laurens is the best, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Non-Graphic Violence, Photographer!John, Press scretary!Angelica Schuylar, The West Wing - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-23
Updated: 2017-04-12
Packaged: 2018-09-19 13:11:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 71
Words: 70,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9442088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatL1305/pseuds/CatL1305
Summary: Alex is the adopted son of POTUS George Washington. John is a photographer for a photoshoot with Alex. They are both very gay. Alex isn't ready to come out because he's not in a relationship but people are starting to wonder why he doesn't have a girlfriend so they hire Eliza. Their relationship is completely platonic, don't worry. Eventual Lams.Warning: non-graphic descriptions of violence





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so disclaimer: I am English. I know basically nothing about the US. Please don't get upset about inaccuracies. Also, I have used next to no historical elements when it comes to the characters eg birthdays or hair colour etc. I picture the original broadway cast but feel free to picture them however you like.

Alexander Hamilton opened his eyes to see the golden glow of sunlight penetrating through his curtains and dimly illuminating the room. A single, faded mug, balanced on the windowsill, cast a shadow across Alex’s face and reminded him of the multitude of work he had to get done that day. He felt as though the mug represented the internal struggle within him; the raging war between his need to sleep and his desire to write. The previous night Alex had barely been able to keep his eyes open as he wrote one of dozens of essays on gay rights he had no plans to publish. The only thing that had kept him going after three days straight of not sleeping was mug upon mug of instant coffee. He could probably have stayed up a few hours longer to finalise the essay but he knew he had an interview and photo shoot the next day, neither of which he could show up to with bags under his eyes. Last time Alexander had made a public appearance looking like he hadn’t slept in a week – he hadn’t, he had left a midterm essay for college to the last minute – there had been a lot of speculation. Was the president’s adopted bastard son a junkie? Was he mentally stable? Rumours only grow. Alex took a deep breath before pushing off his covers, took a few seconds to comb his hair with his fingers, and started out of the room.  
By the time he was half way to the kitchen, Alex’s stomach was growling with hunger. When had he last eaten? Yesterday he had skipped dinner because he felt ill and he couldn’t remember lunch. Alex wasn’t particularly good at keeping to a constant eating schedule. Back in the Caribbean he was poor. He was the son of a whore and his father had left when he was 10. Food was fairly scarce. When his mother died he didn’t want to eat. When his cousin committed suicide there was no one left to make him eat. After the hurricane hit he simply couldn’t eat. Almost everyone he knew had died and Alex almost wished he had too. His writing had allowed him to take passage on a ship headed to New York where he ended up in the care system. The Washingtons were the first people who had cared enough about him since his cousin to make sure he ate enough to survive and, while he was grateful, he simply couldn’t bring himself to eat three large meals a day.  
The warm, rich smell of cinnamon rolls snapped Alex back to the present. He couldn’t afford to dwell today. He needed to eat, shower and dress before 11 when he would be interviewed by a magazine doing some sort of piece on him. The interview would be followed promptly by a photo shoot which should wrap up around 4pm. At the moment Alex stepped into the kitchen, 4pm was 7 hours away and he couldn’t wait for it to arrive.

“Good morning Alexander, I trust you slept well?” George Washington was sat at the breakfast bar, eyes scanning a newspaper, one hand round a cup of what could only be coffee judging by the aromatic fumes it was producing, and the other cradling a cinnamon roll. 

“Very well thank you George – we don’t want any more rumours about me being a crackpot,” Alex jokingly returned. From very early on in his relationship with the Washingtons, Alex had made it clear that he could not abide being called son and that he most certainly wouldn’t be calling George and Martha mum and dad. 

They were surprisingly okay with it, only happy to have someone to care for. George smirked over his coffee at Alex’s comment before taking a sip. A few second later a steaming cup of his own coffee was held in front of his face and he turned to see Martha Washington smiling and holding it, along with a plate of cinnamon rolls, out for him.

“If we could avoid any rumours today, love, that would be lovely. Here, coffee and food should make you look like less of a zombie.” 

Alex flashed a thankful grin and took his breakfast from her. He sat down as George finished the last bite of his food and downed the rest of the coffee. 

“Unfortunately my dears, duty calls. Alexander, I will see you after your photoshoot and Martha love I will see you at lunch. Oh, by the way, Alex, Angelica will be in charge of the proceedings for your interview and such today. Enjoy!” With that he rushed out of the room, presumably to avoid the death glare that Alex shot at his back. 

He loved Angelica, he really did, but when she was being professional Angelica he needed at least a day’s notice to prepare. 

“Why didn’t he tell me I would have to deal with Angie before?!” 

Martha chuckled at his outburst and gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze.

“You know George dear; for an ex-army general he is rather awful at confrontations. He knows as well as you and I do how Angelica is when she’s working. He also knows as well as I do that you can be rather cranky when it comes to publicity. He’s just scared to upset you.” 

“I know, I know; you’re right. I’ll be fine. He’s such a dad though it’s painful,” he chuckled to himself. 

Her hand lingered on his shoulder for a few more seconds before she smiled and walked away, leaving him alone in the kitchen. By this point the 21 year old was practically salivating due to the cinnamon roll that was currently residing on his plate but was soon to be in is stomach. Or so he thought.  
“MON PETIT LION? OÙ ES-TU? C’EST MOI! TON AMOUR!” 

Alex imagined that his best friend Lafayette should have been able to locate him simply from the sigh he let out at the sound of his shouting but he replied regardless. 

“DANS LA CUISINE, MONSIEUR BAGUETTE. NON, PARDON MOI! MONSIEUR LAFAYETTE.” 

Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette was a descendent of some French aristocrat and Alexander’s best friend. He had moved to the states for college where they had met and quickly befriended one and other as Alex was fluent in French.

“Monsieur Hamilton, you are very rude to your poor friend. I do not appreciate your taunts,” spoke Lafayette in a mock-hurt voice as he entered the room. 

“I’m sorry, mon cher, how are you today? Actually what are you doing here? You know I have interview stuff today,” Alex replied as the Frenchman took a cinnamon roll from the plate and dug in.

“I am here for moral support mon ami. I know how you hate these days filled with publicity. I will donner un coup de main.”

It was at times like this that Alex realised why he loved Lafayette so much. His friend knew him so well. He simply nodded at his friend, hoping his gratefulness was transferred by it, and finally took a bit out of his cinnamon roll. 

“Mon Dieu, c’est magnifique!” Martha’s cinnamon rolls were perhaps Alex’s favourite things on earth. They were sugary and sticky and perfect. He could only hope that the rest of the day went ahead with the same sweet note it had started off with.


	2. Chapter 2

Alexander Hamilton wanted to cry. He hadn’t expected this interview to be particularly arduous. He definitely hadn’t expected the interviewer to head down this particular path of questioning. The interviewer had started off with the usual lines of inquiry – ‘how’s college going? What are you planning on doing when you’ve finished? What is your opinion on your father’s stance on…’ etc etc. Then, she started on something new.

“So, Alex,” she had begun, a small smirk accompanied by a slightly raised eyebrow finding its way on to her face, “Let’s talk relationships – specifically, romantic relationships.”

Alex felt his heart begin to hammer in his chest. He didn’t have a prepared answer for this.

“We’ve noticed something strange,” she continued. 

The hammering got harder and faster. ‘Fuck’ He thought. ‘She can’t know. Can she?’ He smiled despite the discomfort he was feeling and mirrored the interviewer by raising one of his own eyebrows.

“Oh? What’s that?” he responded. 

The interviewer smiled more openly; she was obviously glad that he didn’t shut down that line of questioning immediately. 

“What’s strange is that you, as the young, dashing son of the president of the United States, don’t have a line of ladies waiting to fall at your feet wherever you go. We’ve never seen you with a date Alex, what’s that about?” 

The hammering slowed. The question hadn’t gone where he had thought it would but he still needed a convincing answer or else the next time he might not be so lucky and the right question might be asked. Alex was in no way ready to come out. As he was the son of the president he didn’t see the point in risking any bad press by coming out when he wasn’t in a serious relationship that he didn’t want to have to hide. The only person aware of Alex’s rather non-heterosexual sexuality was Lafayette. The Frenchmen himself was queer and had no qualms in letting people know. For this reason, Alex had found himself keen to tell Lafayette. It was definitely a huge weight off his chest. He knew, had always known, that there was nothing wrong with being queer but it was still a shocking revelation. Put simply: the answer to the question was he was gay as fuck but he couldn’t say that so instead he blamed school.

“I’m flattered, really,” he began, chuckling slightly, “but there isn’t really anything strange or mysterious. I’m a college student. That along with any duties I have as the president’s son means that I simply have no time in my life for a relationship. I’m aware of how sad that sounds but really I love all the work I do.” He flashed a winning grin and hoped that would be the end of it. A quick glance at the clock on the wall behind the interviewer told him that it was 1pm meaning he should be about to have a break before the photoshoot. 

“Well that makes a lot of sense. I must say I was hoping for something a little juicier but I am glad to know, as I’m sure the readers will be too, that you are so invested in your education. If you do decide to pursue politics in the future, the country is in good hands. Thank you,” the interviewer finished before reaching over and turning off the recorder she had placed on the table between them. “Really, Alex, thank you. That was a great interview. I’m sorry if the question at the end there was too personal but I was told I had to ask it.”  
Alex shook his head and smiled kindly. “It’s fine, I understand.”

The two stood up together, shook hands across the table and then she left. Alex sat back down. That had been too close. He needed to talk to George without arousing suspicion as to the real reason he didn’t have a girlfriend. Unfortunately for him, he had yet to suffer through a couple of hours of awkward posing in front of a camera. Photographers, in Alex’s experience with them, were the worst. They never stopped criticising what he was doing, what he looked like or the ‘perpetually bored expression on his face’. Alex did not do well with criticism. He had worked hard to get everything he had and didn’t appreciate people who assumed they knew him because of his position in the Nation telling him he was anything other than hard working. Essentially, the following hours were sure to be the longest of his life. 

“Mon petite lion?” called Lafayette from the side of the room. 

Suddenly Alex felt far more relaxed. Laf had that effect on him. He stood up from the brown leather chair and walked over to where the Frenchman was residing. 

“Firstly, here have a bagel-there’s a buffet type thing over there and I know how you love cinnamon bagels. Secondly, are you okay? I couldn’t hear you two but I could see you looked uncomfortable towards the end,” enquired Lafayette with worry in his eyes and concern clear in the lines on his forehead. 

“Oui, mon ami. She was asking why I don’t have a girlfriend. It’s just she started the question rather ambiguously and I thought she somehow knew that I am very gay,’ he whispered, careful to make sure that no one could hear.

“It is good that she didn’t know, non?” 

“I mean, yeah, but how long before school isn’t a good enough excuse anymore? How long will it be until someone asks the right question?” Alex couldn’t help but put his head in his hands, intermittently lifting it slightly to take a bite of bagel. Lafayette placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on his shoulder and sighed. He knew what it was like to be in the closet. For years he had hidden the fact that he was pan before deciding that the people who wouldn’t accept him didn’t deserve him. It was easier for him than Alex. Lafayette was attracted to girls so he could still actually date but more importantly he wasn’t the adopted son of The President of the United States. 

“Alexander, do you want my advice?” 

Alex nodded as best as he could with his head where it was.

“Okay. Now, normally my advice would be to just come out publically however I know you can’t do that or at least won’t so here is my specific Alexander Hamilton-based advice. Come out to George and Martha. They love you little lion, they always will. George is a democrat, this will not affect his opinion of you. Come out to them and ask them to hire you a girlfriend. She can be a friend who you can get on with and pretend to date when necessary,” suggested Lafayette. 

Alex lifted his head and smiled at his friend. He then nodded, took a deep breath, placed the last of his bagel in his mouth and stood up. 

“Thank you. As much as I don’t like it, it’s better than the alternative. I’ll tell them later. Now I have a photo shoot to do and… oh my God.” Alex trailed off and Lafayette turned to look where his smaller friend’s now glazed over eyes were looking. “h-holy shit, Laf. Do you see him? Oh my God. Look at those freckles and the hair and oh my God he’s so pretty I’m actually going to cry.”

“Yes, Alex very nice but if you keep looking at him like you want to lick his face, you are definitely going to get questions about your sexuality.”

“Yep, yep. You’re right it’s just he is genuinely beautiful and wow okay look I have started to cry what the fuck?” Alex turned away from the man and wiped his eyes. 

“Mon Dieu, Alexander. You are really gay. Now, go do the photoshoot. Oh God. Okay, actually make sure you have fully calmed down before you do the photoshoot. The pretty boy is the photographer.” 

“ALEXANDER HAMILTON!”

“Oh, and Ang is headed over here. Good luck mon ami, I’m going to get some food.’

Alex swore. Loudly. He had managed to avoid Angelica all day. She had been busy speaking to the interviewer and her team and stepping out to do briefings all morning. Now he had to deal with her and this effervescent photographer. He put on his best smile before turning round to find himself face to face with a slightly out of breath Angelica Schuylar. 

“Alex, there you are. Are you okay? You look all flustered and – are you crying?”

“I was,” he replied before his brain could engage and stop him. 

“Why?”

“Someone was pretty.” God, why was he telling her this?

“Who?”

“The ph- interviewer. The, uh, female, yeah, female interviewer.” He stumbled over his words and Angelica raised a sympathetic eyebrow.

“Alex, listen. I..erm… Man I know, well at least I think I do - you see I’m quite good at reading people and um-“

“Angelica!”

“I know you’re gay Alex,” she whispered rather aggressively, obviously irritated by Alex’s interruption. “I’ve known for ages and I don’t care. No one else knows. We can talk about this later but right now you have a photoshoot to do come on! Oh and do try not to stare at John too much.”

“John?”

“The photographer.”

“Oh.”

With his heart beating faster every second, Alexander Hamilton made his way over to the most beautiful human he had and probably would ever see.


	3. Chapter 3

“Hi! Mr Hamilton? My name is John Laurens and I’m the photographer for today.” John held his hand out for Alexander to shake, grinning widely. Alex thought his smile was beautiful. Perhaps it may have been a little too big for his face by conventional beauty standards, but to Alex it was stunning. The way that the freckles on his cheeks pushed outwards together to make room for the smile made Alex weak in the knees. The moment John opened his mouth, Alex was helpless.

“Hi! Yes, well it’s Alexander well actually most people call me Alex but you know…” he trailed off and felt his cheeks warm. He was usually so eloquent but with this literal ray of sunshine still beaming at him he could barely string a sentence together. 

“Okay then, Alexander, shall we get started?”

Alex nodded, his capability for speech having flown out of the window the moment his name rolled off of John’s tongue. God, he was already in way too deep. 

“Right, let’s get the boring pose-y ones over and done with, then they want a couple of candid shots. Sound good?”

Alex nodded again.

“Great, could you sit on that chair, but backwards so facing me-yeah like that- and then arms crossed, resting on the back of the chair. Nice. Okay then, eyes on the camera and 3, 2, 1…” John lifted the camera that had been hanging from his neck to his face and Alex heard a click. John inspects the image before looking back up. 

“Was that okay?” Alex asked, having regained the ability to speak.

“Perfect, you have an amazing smile,” praised John.

Alex couldn’t believe how John had said it so flippantly and yet those six words caused his stomach to flip and his cheeks to redden. Again.

“Right, same again but this time eyes looking about a foot to the right of me. Yep that’s it 3…2…1” 

They went on like that for a little while, John asking Alex to change positions or his facial expression, each time giving little compliments. 

After about an hour and a half, John let the camera rest on his chest for more than a few seconds.

“Okay, that was amazing. I’m sorry this is taking so long but this next section will be more fun I hope. Basically we’re just going to chat and I’ll take photos whenever I feel like it,” he explained, “just sit however you normally would-whatever feels comfortable. I’m sure you’ll look good whatever you’re doing.” He added a wink to the end of the sentence.

Alex broke out into a grin, even giggled a little and his cheeks flushed-all of which John captured as he swiftly brought his camera up to his face and took a picture. Alex instantly felt his stomach drop as he realised the raw emotion that would be shown in the photo and his smile fell.

“Oh-I-um, I’m sorry that was inappropriate. I shouldn’t have said that or done that or taken the picture. I’ll delete it-it’s just you looked really genuinely happy and I took it almost as a reflex.” John moved to delete the photo.

“No! I mean, you don’t have to delete it. I’d rather it wasn’t published in the article if that’s okay, but if you need for, I don’t know a portfolio or something… God I sound really obnoxious right now…”

“You don’t. I won’t send it off with the others but it is a really great picture. I think I’d like to keep it? For now? I know that does sound weird but it would actually be really useful for a portfolio-I’m freelance you see so anything that could help with getting a job.. so yeah?” John laughed a little as he finished. 

“Okay, cool. Back to the shoot?”

It was half past three when they finally finished the photoshoot but to Alex it flew by. He had never experienced a bearable extent of time with a photographer and he had found these few hours down right enjoyable. He had learnt a lot about John during the second half as they had their conversation for the ‘candid’ shots. He was from South Carolina but had been living in New York for seven years. He discovered that John was three years older than him at twenty five and that his favourite animal was a turtle, more specifically softshell turtles. Everything that Alex found out made him fall further and further. 

“It was really nice to meet you Alexander. You really do have an amazing smile-you should use it more. I hope we can meet again.” He held out his hand for Alex to shake. 

Alex took it and looked him in the eye.  
“Are you in any way affiliated with a media publication, well I mean is there any way that what I am about to do would make it into the news?” 

John shook his head, a look of confusion evident in his furrowed brow.

“Then I too hope we will meet again, in fact I’ll make sure of it.” He squeezed John’s hand and winked before letting go and walking past him, towards the door. He turned back just before he left the room to see John still facing the empty spot that Alex had just occupied. From where he was Alex could see John’s profile. John had a huge grin on his face.


	4. Chapter 4

Alex was walking towards the oval office with Lafayette. He had asked Martha’s head of staff to find him a few minutes with both of the Washingtons and he wasn’t sure if he was grateful or not for the fact that they had pretty free schedules. They reached the president’s secretary’s desk and Alex greeted the woman sitting there-Kitty-kindly.

“Good to see you too Alexander. George will be ready in about a minute and the first lady is already in there,” she replied, cheerful as ever. The two boys stepped away from the desk and moved to wait a little away from any of the other people in the room.

“I’m about to come out,” whispered Alex.

“And I’ll be out here as you do.”

“ALEXANDER!” George’s voice sounded from the next room.

“Go, tell them now,” urged Lafayette as Alex made no move to go in. 

“I’ll see you on the other side?”

“Until we meet again.” 

“Let’s go.” Alex took a deep breath and entered the oval office. 

“Afternoon Alexander,” welcomed George.

“Afternoon Sir, afternoon Martha.”

“Hello dear, how was the interview? And the photoshoot?” asked Martha. 

Alex swallowed and suddenly felt his mouth go dry.

“They were okay, but uh, I have to talk to you both about something-it sort of came up in the interview,” he replied.

“You haven’t said anything that’s going to make Angelica’s job a lot harder, have you?” George raised an eyebrow as he spoke.

“No-not yet? This is more preventing such an occurrence happening in the future I guess,” Alex answered. He continued when he realised the Washingtons were awaiting the rest of the explanation. He palms were sweaty and he felt slightly nauseated. “Okay, so I’m going to ask that you don’t say anything until I’m done. The interviewer asked me why I never have a date at events. She commented that she couldn’t believe that I have never had a girlfriend. I told her that it was because of school work being my priority. That is partially true-I don’t really have time to be in a relationship-but the main reason I don’t have a girlfriend is that I don’t want one. And the reason I don’t want one is that I’d much, in fact I’d infinitely rather have a boyfriend. Not finished. Now, I don’t want to come out because I’m not having to hide a relationship so I’m not that bothered about being in the closet so I don’t want someone to ask the right question next time. For that reason I think you, or Angelica I suppose-she knows by the way-should sort of, hire me a girlfriend?” Alex took a deep breath and sat down. “That’s it, I’m done.”

Neither of his adopted parents spoke for a few seconds. Instead, they stared at Alex with wide eyes. Finally, after what felt like hours but couldn’t realistically have been more than ten seconds, George spoke.

“Thank you for telling us Alexander. I hope you were not scared to scared to come out to us, you know we love you very dearly and there is no way that this could change that. I am incredibly proud of you, son.”

Tears filled Alexander’s eyes and he couldn’t bring himself to challenge the word ‘son’. Instead he looked to Martha who was smiling warmly at him. That was the last straw. He took the few steps needed to reach her and wrapped her into a hug. A few seconds later he heard George walk round from his desk and then he felt the strong weight of the President’s arms around his wife and adopted son, reassuring and loving. 

“I love you guys too, thank you for everything. But, um, seriously. What do you think about the hiring a girlfriend idea? Laf suggested it. At first I wasn’t sure but I do think it would be nice to have a friend that I can stay close to at events-you know how I get,” he said, barely making his voice heard from the middle of the Washington sandwich. 

“I think,” started George, “that if it’s what you want, then it can be arranged, but I don’t want to do anything that’s going to be detrimental to your mental health. If at any point during the Washington administration, you feel that you want to come out then we can sort that out. Martha? What do you think?”

Martha shifted and the men took that as a sign to step away so she could speak.

“I agree. If it’s going to help you then we’ll do it but as soon as it stops being helpful and begins to be harmful we’re putting an end to it,” she confirmed with stern finality. 

Alex nodded happily to show he was sure. George opened his mouth to speak again but was stopped when someone knocked sharply on the door before poking their head in the room. It was Kitty.

“Sorry sir, Angelica is here to see you.”

“Send her in.” 

As soon as Kitty turned to indicate to Angelica, the press secretary hurried into the room.

“Good afternoon Mr President, Mrs Washington, Alexander. I’m sorry to disturb but Lafayette texted me to say that I should come and see you? I don’t know why. Have I done something wrong sir?” Angelica rushed through her words, anxiety flooding each one. 

“On the contrary, Lafayette sent you here because we need some assistance. I didn’t send for you but I would have eventually. Alexander? Would you care to explain?” George answered, kindly.

“Of course sir. Sorry Lafayette worried you, Ang. Basically, the interviewer today asked why I don’t have a girlfriend and I kind of realised that it is sort of suspicious. So I’ve literally just told George and Martha that I’m gay and now I’d like you to hire me a girlfriend. I don’t really care who, so long as she can be trusted to know the situation and is good company,” he explained, trying not to laugh at the very varied facial expressions that Angelica provided. 

She turned to look at George, Martha and then back to Alexander in turn. 

“Are you sure about this, Alex? This could be really damaging to your mental health.”

Alex nodded.

“Quite sure, Ang. I’m not saying I’ll never publically come out. I think that this would be better because I can have support at social events and it’s less likely that rumours will force me out of the closet. I imagine that would be more damaging.”

“Okay, it’s a slow news day today-I imagine I’ll be calling a full lid in about an hour-so I should be able to compile a list and get it to you by the end of the day,” proposed Angelica.

Alex nodded and the Washingtons smiled. Angelica said goodbye to them all and headed out of the oval office. 

As she closed one door, another opened and Hercules Mulligan, the personal aide to the president walked in.

“I’m sorry sir, but it’s time for the photo-op with the group of students who won the competition for a tour of the White House,” he said.

“Of course! Martha, Alexander, do you want to come? It would be a nice surprise for the students I’m sure, after all you are both far more interesting than me,” chuckled George. 

They both nodded and Hercules left to bring the group in. 

As they were taking the pictures Alex realised just how useful this fake girlfriend would be. He was so visible and it could only be a matter of time before something went very wrong.


	5. Chapter 5

At 6 O’clock, one hour after Angelica had called a full lid, she was headed to the residence to show Alexander her list of potential fake girlfriends. Well, it wasn’t so much of a list as one name jotted down on a piece of paper. She walked through the West Wing, reached the West lobby and towards the entrance of the residence. 

“Evening Miss Schuylar,” greeted the staffer on the door. 

“Good evening, is Alexander somewhere inside?”

“Yes miss, I’ve just been inside to deliver a message-he’s in the kitchen with Monsieur de Lafayette.”

“Thank you,” said Angelica, smiling before walking into the residence and towards the kitchen. Most West Wing staffers wouldn’t know where to go as the residence was generally the one place they wouldn’t visit however Angelica was friends with Alexander before she became the Press Secretary of the Washington administration meaning she often visited the rooms. 

“Angelica!” called Alexander from the kitchen when he spotted her through the doorway. 

“Alex, good to see you again. I didn’t get to say it back in the oval but I’m really proud of you,” she commended before opening her arms for a hug from the shorter man. “I’ve brought you the list,” she added as she stepped back. 

Alex took the piece of paper from her outstretched hand and looked at her with a quizzical expression. 

“This is just one name?” he looked down to read it again. “Eliza.. Schuylar?”

“My sister,” filled Angelica. “I suddenly realised there is no need for a list because she’s perfect. I know my sister like I know my own mind, you will never find anyone you can trust more. She’s a graduate of Brown and is possibly the most charming person, aside from Lafayette-” she looked up and smiled at the Frenchman as she spoke before returning her gaze to Alex, “-that I know of. She’s the perfect female match for America’s favourite son.”

“Honestly Angelica, if she’s related to you and you think she’s perfect, and that she’s be willing then go ahead and hire her. I trust you and your genes.”

“I cannot believe that we have never met her. Angelica mon cher, why have you been hiding her from us?” asked Lafayette, acting hurt. 

“There’s a lot that you don’t know about me Gilbert. She’s not particularly interested in politics and mother appreciates that. Dad is a senator, I’m the press secretary and Peggy is off at catering college so Eliza is mum’s only source of conversation that doesn’t involve politics right now. I didn’t want to take that away from her and neither did Eliza so I’ve never introduced you guys,” she replied.

“Ah. Okay. For a moment I thought that maybe you were ashamed of your dear friends. Anyway, like Alexander said, if she is a Schuylar she must be wonderful,” Lafayette winked as he spoke and Angelica rolled her eyes. 

“Lafayette, if you continue to flirt with me, I will stop talking you up to Mulligan,” she threatened.

“You wouldn’t!” he gasped in return. Lafayette had been crushing on Hercules since he was hired but was yet to properly speak to him. The Frenchman was the most outgoing person Alex knew, he never got nervous speaking to an important foreign national, but put him in a situation where he may have to speak to the president’s aide and he would quickly find his way out of it. 

“Don’t be cruel Ang, you know how obsessed he is with Herc,” chided Alex.

Lafayette scoffed.

“What?”

“You say that I am obsessed and yet you were the one who cried because the photographer was pretty.”

“Yeah, and what? Have you never seen a hypocrite before?” laughed Alex. 

“That is honestly adorable Alex. I’ll be sure to let you know if he’s ever coming to the white house again,” offered Angelica. 

Alex smiled at her words and nodded enthusiastically. 

“Okay, well I’m going to go back to my office and with any luck head home. I’ll bring Eliza in with me tomorrow, come to the West Wing when you can.” With that she kissed each man on the cheek and vacated the residence. 

Alex turned to look at Lafayette who had moved to sit at the breakfast bar.

“Are you staying here tonight?” asked Alex.

“Oui, if that is okay with you. I think it has been an emotional day for you and I want to make sure you get enough sleep,” he replied softly, looking at Alex with caring eyes. 

Alex smiled at his friend gratefully. Whenever Laf stayed over he would refuse a guest room, insisting he would rather stay on a camp bed in Alexander’s room so they can stay up without disturbing anyone by moving between rooms. That was only half of the reason. The other half is that they both slept in Alex’s bed, usually with the smaller man curled up into Lafayette’s side. Alex slept better when Lafayette was with him.


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning Lafayette left the white house promising he would be back later in the day to meet Eliza. It was a Sunday which meant Alex had all day to relax before going back to college the next day. Normally Alex lived on campus, only coming home for holidays or long weekends but he would also come back when he was needed for an event or for publicity. Doing interviews on random weekends when it’s easier for the interviewer meant that he could avoid losing time with his family on actual visits. Alex, despite having taken a gap year and only being 21, would be graduating a month before his 22nd birthday. His birthday was three months away and as much as he loved college he couldn’t wait to be done. He loved learning new things but also he wanted more time to work on other projects. That was why he had gone to the bursar of Princeton college promising he could do college in 2 years. The bursar had looked at him like he was an idiot until he remembered why he knew the name Alexander Hamilton, at which point he claimed that there was no way that Alex could finish college in 2 years due to his duty as the first son. Alex had almost punched him until he remembered that he was the first son. Columbia, on the other hand, took one look at his grades and commitments in high school and decided there was no way it would take him longer than 2 years. Now he was two months away from graduating and he had no more papers to write, no more meticulously editing dissertations into the early hours of the morning. No, he had done everything he needed to do, earned all of the credits he needed to earn. All he had left to do was his final exams. They were coming up in two weeks and then he’d have the rest of his time at the college to relax. Some people would be going home in the few weeks between the end of finals and graduation but Alex would only be going for two weeks as he wanted to spend some time away from the White House when he could actually relax. 

It was 11 o’clock by the time Alex got dressed and wandered to Angelica’s office in the West Wing. He would have gone earlier but firstly he couldn’t really be bothered, and secondly she would have the senior staff meeting and then the press gaggle and then scheduling with her staff meaning that it was unlikely that she had been free earlier. When he arrived at her door it was open and inside sat a beautiful girl in a blue blouse. Alex was sure that if he wasn’t very, very gay he would be crushing hard already.

“Eliza?” he questioned, assuming that she would be the only person Angelica would leave alone in her office. 

At the sound of his voice the girl turned her head towards the door and stood up as soon as she saw who was standing there.

“Yes, that’s me. It’s good to meet you Mr Hamilton,” she spoke smoothly, holding out a hand for Alex to shake. 

He took it graciously and smiled kindly.

“Please, call me Alex. I’m assuming that Angelica has told you what’s going on?”

“Yes, she has. I hope that I can be what you are looking for. I can definitely be trusted with this-I’m bi, you see, so I understand how vulnerable you feel when you’re hiding something so big so there’s no way that I would tell anyone anything. Also, I’m the daughter of a senator so I suppose the match probably makes sense from the outside-not to mention that you’ve been friends with my sister for years. Sorry, I’m rambling.” Eliza stopped speaking, looking slightly embarrassed. 

Alex couldn’t help but smile. She looked at him with confusion.

“What? Why are you smiling like that?”

“I’m sorry, I’m not laughing at you or anything, it’s just that I’m pretty sure that if I were even remotely attracted to women, I would be falling so hard for you right now,” he chuckled. 

“Well I’m flattered. It’s not every day that the first son of the United States hypothetically falls in love with you.”

“Ah, Alex! I see you’ve met Eliza. What do you think? Is she up to the job?” Angelica walked in and closed the door. 

“She’s the perfect choice, good job Ang,” he commended, “But what’s the story? How are we going to do this?”

“Right of course. Well, I was thinking-and the fact that you came in when I wasn’t here makes this even better-I decided to show my sister around the White House and you two met. Now we can say that you were looking for someone and couldn’t help but going in and talking to her-the media loves that kind of stuff. Now I suggest that the two of you see if you can go out to get coffee somewhere. Try to get photographed being sort of flirty. Nothing too over the top, mind, just enough to get some rumours started,” she instructed.


	7. Chapter 7

Twenty minutes later, Alex and Eliza were sitting in a Starbucks just a few minutes’ walk from the White House. While neither of them would frequent a Starbucks by choice, they both agreed that they would likely be spotted by the press quicker if they went to the chain rather than an independent coffee shop. Eliza had ordered a green tea lemonade whilst Alex got a cappuccino with two extra shots of espresso. He paid for both of the drinks and a blueberry muffin for them to share. As expected, within five minutes of them arriving a group of reporters were standing outside. Alex supposed they must have trailed them from the White House. He and Eliza were sat towards the back of the shop, closed off enough from other patrons so as to seem like an ideal date spot but still in full view of the window. 

“Will they come in?” asked Eliza, taking a sip of her drink.

“No, don’t worry. They don’t go that far. They’ll probably wait outside and then when we leave they’ll stop us to ask questions,” he explained, reaching across the table to take a piece of the muffin. 

Eliza nodded and also took a piece of the muffin, smiling as she did. 

“Well, this is supposed to be a first date, so let’s get to know each other,” suggested Alex, “Are you in college?”

“I was-graduated last year, I’m 23. I majored in Human development and family studies. I want to work with kids-maybe in an orphanage? Something like that anyway.” She reached out to grab another piece of the muffin.

Alex did so at the same time and their fingers brushed. Alex hoped that someone had got a picture of that and winked at Eliza for good measure. She giggled and looked away. 

“Okay, that’s nice. I like kids. So, me now. I’m 21. I’m graduating with a major in poli-sci in two months. I’d like to work in the white house when I’m older. I’ve always loved politics but I guess as soon as I got a taste of the white house I fell in love with it. Honestly, I never want to leave,” he said, wistfully. 

“Well you’ve got at least two and a bit years and Washington could run again. That would be six more years for you in the white house. By then you’ll probably be well on your way to getting a job there in the next administration.”

Alex laughed.

“You flatter me, Miss Schuyler. I’ll definitely be keeping you around, if only for regular ego boosts.”

She hit him lightly in a playful manner and Alex laughed again. He suddenly realised how much it probably looked like a date to anyone watching. 

“Okay, my turn to ask a question. What’s your favourite animal?” asked Eliza.

Alex’s mind instantly went to the conversation that he’d had with John Laurens the day before.

“Turtles,” he replied before he could stop himself. He had no idea why he’d said that. His favourite animal was a lion. 

Eliza gave him an incredulous look before laughing. 

“Turtles? Really? I don’t think I have ever met someone whose favourite animal is a turtle.”

“Well, you obviously live a very sheltered life Eliza. Just yesterday I met a lovely young man whose favourite animal is a turtle. A softshell turtle to be exact.” Alex felt his cheeks heat up as soon as he mentioned John. He could tell that Eliza had noticed too. 

“My, my. What was the name of this lovely young man?” she prompted, a twinkle in her eye. 

“John. John Laurens,” he replied, blushing even more. 

“John Laurens, eh? Was he pretty?” she whispered. 

Alex put his face in his hands for a few seconds before looking up at her. She looked highly amused. She raised an eyebrow, daring him to answer. He sighed and sat up again. 

“So pretty,” he whispered back, “he was so pretty it made me cry a little bit.”

She threw her head back and let out a proper laugh. It was contagious and soon Alex was laughing too. A few other people in the Starbucks smiled at their interaction. When she stopped laughing, Eliza leant forwards and took Alex’s hands in her own across the table.

“You, my friend, are helpless.”

Around half an hour later both Alex and Eliza had finished their drinks and the blueberry muffin. They stood up together and got ready to face the reporters. They followed the two secret service agents who had been sitting a few tables away to the door. The moment it was opened and they stepped out, they were barraged with questions. Alex held up his hand to indicate that he wished to speak. The reporters stopped talking and stared at him, notebooks and recorders poised. 

“Hello everyone, good to see you. I’ll be more than happy to answer your questions but first can we just move slightly that way, we’re currently in the way of the entrance to the shop and my father has enough complaints without us stopping anyone from getting to much needed caffeine!”

The group laughed and stepped down the road slightly. Alex always found it odd having to call George his father in front of the press. 

“Okay, so questions? Hang on-I imagine this would be simpler if I just tell you what I’m willing to tell you. Okay, so, this is Eliza Schuyler, yes daughter to Senator Philip Schuyler and sister to the White House Press Secretary, Angelica. I’ve known Angelica for years but only met Eliza today. I was walking past Angelica’s office and noticed she was in there, and well I couldn’t help but go in and talk to her. Anyway, I guess we hit it off and I suggested we go for coffee and as you guys know, we did. I don’t have any comment on the nature of our relationship at this time. Have a good day everyone, thank you.”

As they walked away there was a mix of further questions and ‘thank you Alex’s. Eliza smiled at him as they walked. 

“That’s so impressive you know. My father struggles to control the press but they respect you. You speak so well. It’s a really amazing skill,” she complimented. 

Alex smiled at her gratefully but said nothing. They walked the rest of the way back to the White House in comfortable silence, both happy that everything had gone to plan.


	8. Chapter 8

Eliza stayed at the White House until 5 o’clock. Alex gave her a tour of the White House once they got back from coffee and then left her to catch up with her sister before Angelica had to do her afternoon press conference. Then he met Eliza again and they watched the press conference on the screens in Angelica’s office. The questions were a split between Alex’s new mystery girl and a rumour regarding a meeting with the FBI director and the President. When Angelica assured the reporters that the meeting had just been the weekly update, just at a different time and in a different room, all questions turned to Alex and Eliza. 

“Angelica! Hi, who was the girl we saw Alexander with earlier today?”

“My sister, Eliza Schuyler. As far as I know they are just friends but they have only just met so who knows where this could go. Next? Danny?”

“Is Alexander losing focus on his school work?”

“Absolutely not. He is on track to graduate in two months and as I have said many times, he is always dedicated-there is no way he could finish college in two years otherwise. Who’s next? Jasmine?”

“Did you introduce the two? Was there a matchmaking plan?”

“No, I didn’t introduce them Mr Hamilton explained how they met to some members of the press earlier and it’s been posted to the Washington Post website. I refer you to there. That’s it everyone, that’s a full lid,” she finished smoothly before stepping down from the podium and leaving the room. When she reached her office Eliza and Alex were talking quietly, immediately stopping when they noticed someone walking in. 

“Oh, it’s you, sorry-we weren’t talking about you, we were discussing John Laurens,” explained Alex when she looked suspiciously at them.

“Ah, John. Yes I must say it took a lot to stay serious when you told me you cried because someone was pretty,” she chuckled. She walked in to the room and closed the door. “so what particularly were you discussing about the lovely photographer?”

“He and Alex were flirting throughout the photoshoot,” supplied Eliza. 

Angelica’s eyes widened and Alex suddenly looked panicked.

“It was subtle! I swear, no one noticed. I winked at him once but I made sure he had no affiliation with a media outlet other than being a photographer and made sure no one was looking first!” 

“Honestly Alex, it’s a full lid, my sister is here and we’re finally having the discussions I’ve been wanting to have with you since I first figured you were gay so right now I don’t care,” she assured. 

“Okay, so Alex, you didn’t answer. What did you find out about him? Other than his favourite animal,” asked Eliza.

“He’s from South Carolina, his middle name is Henry and he is 25,” he answered, eyes glazing over as he thought about the man again. 

“Ooohh, an older man!” teased Angelica. 

“A very, very, very , very pretty older man with amazing curly hair and freckles like stardust and I’m never going to see him again,” whined Alex. 

Angelica and Eliza laughed. Alex glared at them before laughing at himself a little too.

“Never say never, Alex.”

Before he could reply, there was a sharp knock at the door and it opened to reveal one of Angelica’s staff. 

“Sorry Angelica, there’s the interviewer from yesterday on line 1 for you,” she said. 

“Okay, thanks Joe.” Angelica walked round to her desk chair and picked up the phone. “Hello? Yes it is, hi there. Yes I know, I’m sorry. We didn’t expect this. Yes. Okay. I know, I know. They weren’t even supposed to meet. I understand. Okay. Actually Jenny I have him here with me. I’m sure he’d be happy to go on the record now quickly. Okay great, I’m going to put you on speaker.” She put the phone down and pressed a button.

Suddenly, the voice of the interviewer from yesterday filled the room. Angelica shot Alex an apologetic glance before returning her attention to the phone. 

“Hi Alex, I’m sorry to bother you, it’s just that obviously yesterday we had the question about the lack of girlfriend and now that’s kind of redundant.”

“We’re not dating.”

“I know, but until now we’ve had no one to speculate about and that was the point of the question. So, could we get an exclusive comment or something? I know it’s a lot to ask.”

“I guess so. I’ll give you this. I like Eliza a lot and I’d like to see her again soon, for a date.”

Angelica hung up before the reporter could ask anything else.

Eliza went home not long after that and Alex returned to the residence to be picked up for his flight back to college. He hadn’t brought anything other than his laptop with its charger and his phone with its charger so packing didn’t take long. 

Alexander Hamilton was back in his college dorm room by 9 o’clock, ready to face the next few weeks of studying and exams.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This a really short chapter (sorry) so I'm going to do a double update tonight.

The two weeks leading up to finals were a whirlwind of notes, late nights, coffee and near breakdowns. Alex was luckier than most as he knew that he had completed all of his modules so he only had to focus on the exams. Many others had to rush to finish writing dissertations as well as study for exams. Eliza travelled to New York under the pretence of a fortnight of conferences and, whenever they could, she and Alex had made sure to be seen together. At first it was more brief encounters in coffee shops but the second week provided the press with images of the ‘couple’ holding hands as they walked through Morningside park. They got to know each other more and Alex was glad to find that he had gained a real friend in the 23-year-old. She flew home on Sunday the 25th of March, the day before Alex’s exams started.

 

The two weeks of finals were more like a hurricane. However, as Alex knew all too well, there’s an eye in every hurricane, and in the eye of a hurricane there is quiet. Alex’s quiet came in the form of a FedEx package three days into the fortnight.

 

He arrived back in his dorm after an exam to see it lying on his bed. He supposed his roommate must have accepted it on his behalf. He didn’t speak to Aaron much, he found that if he did it would end in an argument, but the man was one of the few students that were, according to the secret service, suitable roommates for Alex. The package was thin and marked ‘do not bend’. He stared at it for a few seconds before curiosity got the better of him and he opened it. Inside there was a note and a thick A4 sheet. The sheet was face down so Alex read the note first.

 

_Alexander,_

_I don’t know if this will reach you as I had no information other than ‘I’m at Columbia’ to go on. I hope it does and I hope you don’t think that I have gone too far by mailing you there. I don’t know if you remember, but there was a photo I took of you that I didn’t send to the magazine. You said I could keep it for a portfolio and, as it was such a lovely picture, I did. I went to a print shop to get an A4 copy for my portfolio and it looks even better printed out. So I have printed off another one and enclosed it with this letter. Feel free to throw it away, but God you look so amazing in this that I couldn’t help but send you it._

_I imagine that the magazine weren’t happy when they saw the pictures of you and Eliza together, they just missed out on an exclusive there. You look really lovely together. I don’t know why I brought that up. Making small talk I guess. It doesn’t work as well in written form._

_Anyway, I hope you like the picture and I hope that I can see you soon._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_J. Laurens_

Alex grinned widely as he read the first paragraph but he couldn’t help the slightly heavy feeling he got in his stomach when John brought up Eliza. For some reason he wanted to tell the man that he and Eliza weren’t really dating. It was an odd feeling, considering they had only met once. When he finished reading the letter, he took out the photograph. Normally he hated photos of himself. They never looked like him somehow, they weren’t quite right. But this photo, this photo was amazing. The expression shown on Alex’s face was completely authentic. He was looking slightly away from the camera, his cheeks were red and it was obvious he was giggling. Honestly, even though it was a photo of himself, he found it hard to look at the raw emotion expressing itself. The photo was too personal to have on display so he used blue tac to fix it to the inside of his wardrobe door.

 

Throughout the rest of his exams the photo calmed him whenever he looked at it. It made him think of John and the feeling of pure joy he felt every time the man, four years his senior, had complimented him. The moment that Alex had looked at John he thought he was like a ray of sunshine, a source of warmth in Alex’s often cold life. So perhaps the eye of Alex’s hurricane wasn’t the package itself, but the man who had sent it.

 


	10. Chapter 10

Alex’s last exam took place on the 6th of April. It was a Friday meaning he was about to have his first truly free weekend in two years. He couldn’t wait. Lafayette was arriving early the next day-he had bought the tickets as soon as he knew for sure when Alex’s final exams ended. Originally it was supposed to be just Alex and Lafayette for the weekend but now Eliza was coming too. She would arrive Saturday evening and both she and the French man would return to DC on the Wednesday, leaving Alex just less than a week to himself before returning to the White House on the 17th. 

“Bonjour! C’est moi.” Called a heavy French accent through the door of Alex’s dorm. The voice was accompanied by continuous, obnoxious knocking. 

Aaron glared at Alex as if it was somehow his fault. Alex just laughed and stood up to open the door. The second he did, he was smothered by a hug from Lafayette.

“Alex, mon cher, how are you? You are relieved that your exams are finished, non?”

“Oui, very relieved. How are you? How was your flight?”

“Pleasant enough. Now, you are forgetting your manners Mr Hamilton, who is this young man?” asked Lafayette, gesturing towards Aaron.

“Oh, right yeah. Sorry. This is Aaron Burr.”

Lafayette held his hand out to Aaron who stood up wearing a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes and shook it. 

“Lovely to meet you, Lafayette yes?”

“Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, at your service.” Lafayette let go of Aaron’s hand and bowed dramatically. Burr looked at Alex with a slightly bewildered expression.

“Ignore him, he’s French.”

Said French man stood up straight, turned and shoved Alex who subsequently fell on his bed in hysterics. Evidently, that was the last straw for Burr who stood up, packed his laptop into its case and left the room, not before shooting a tight smile in Lafayette’s direction. 

“What is wrong with him? He looked as if I had just walked in and murdered his favourite pet.”

Alex scoffed.

“Ignore him, he’s Burr. He’s going home in a few hours. Moving on, we have until 6 before Eliza arrives so what do you want to do? We could get the train somewhere? I was thinking we should go down towards central park on Monday with Eliza. There are a load of shops and stuff on Broadway and we’ll probably be spotted easily. Today though we can just go and get some lunch off campus? I know you’ve just had a flight and I’m kinda drained from exams so I feel like a relaxing day with my best bud would be really useful.”

“I am shocked! Mon petite lion wants to take a break?” joked Lafayette. “To be fair, I do like the sound of some lunch and some rest. Actually I haven’t had breakfast yet! Is there somewhere on campus we can go?” 

“Yeah, there’s a café like three minutes away. They’ll have pastries and stuff-whatever it is you people eat.”

“Alex, you seem to forget that you speak French fluently and have done since childhood.”

Alex laughed and shrugged on a jacket that was lying on his bed. Lafayette put down the satchel he had brought along with his suitcase and waited for Alex to be ready. The shorter man pulled on some shoes, grabbed his keys and led them out of the building. 

When they arrived at the café, there were only a few people inside. Most students in their final year had either gone home or were in the library trying to finish their work. Other students weren’t up yet. Alex ordered a flat white along with a cronut. Lafayette got a hazelnut latte with two croissants.

“Alex, that pastry is an abomination. It is like the love child of a croissant and a donut and it is wrong,” complained Lafayette as they sat down. 

“But it’s a really tasty abomination, trust me. You can’t live in New York without falling in love with cronuts,” claimed Alex.

“I’m pretty sure that’s not true.”

“Shhh,” hushed Alex. 

“You suck.”

“You bet I do.”

Lafayette groaned at the childish joke, the wink that went with it, and the fact that he had set it up. 

“I was wrong. You are the abomination.”

Lunch was another interesting affair. Alex and Lafayette walked a few blocks of campus and found a cute independent deli with mismatching furniture and an amazing menu. Once they had their food-a tuna melt for Alex and a club sandwich for Lafayette-they settled into an easy conversation. It wasn’t long before John Laurens was brought up. 

“Have you heard anything from him?”

“OH MY GOD I FORGOT TO TELL YOU!”

“SHHH!!

“Sorry,” Alex smiled sheepishly and Lafayette just shook his head in response. “I got a FedEx from him. It was a picture that he took of me but didn’t send to the magazine-I’ll show you when we go back to the dorm-and he’d written a really cute note. But he mentioned Eliza? He said we made a cute couple or something like that. I think it was ‘you look really good together’ and like, I don’t want him to think I’m dating someone because I want to date him but I can’t tell him that and I don’t even know for sure if he’s even into guys and it’s all just really stressful. He brought up Eliza, that means it was significant for him right? I don’t know, God Laf help.”

Lafayette stared at Alex with wide eyes. 

“Shit. I knew you had un petit crush on him but this is more serious, non?”

“I can’t stop thinking about him Laf,” whispered Alex. 

“It’s 4 o’clock. I think this is too much to think about now. Eliza is arriving at the airport at 6 and we need to make sure that you can be there to meet her. Come on.”


	11. Chapter 11

A member of Alex’s secret service detail had to accompany him to the airport. Normally he would be annoyed but considering they were allowing to spend time unaccompanied with his friends when they weren’t somewhere really busy, he was more than grateful. 

He and Eliza had decided what was going to happen when she walked out of the arrivals doors. They decided that this was the perfect time to ‘go official’ with their ‘relationship’.

Whilst he was waiting a steady flow of reporters arrived thanks to tweets showing pictures of him at the airport (encouraged heavily by Lafayette) and an anonymous tip (Lafayette again) that he was waiting for Eliza. 

“Eliza!” he called when he saw her walk through the door. 

She looked round dramatically and her face split into a grin when she locked eyes with him. She let go of her suitcase, which was grabbed by Lafayette and handed to an agent, and ran towards Alex. When she reached him, she threw her arms around him and they hugged for a few seconds before Alex leaned back and pressed his lips against hers. Thankfully it had to be quick as they were soon surrounded by reporters. 

“Alexander! Eliza! This way, this way!”

“Are you two officially together?”

“Over here!” 

Alex slipped his arm around her waist and they turned to face the crowd. He raised his free arm, indicating he wanted to speak. A sudden silence overcame the group. 

“Evening everyone, it’s good to see you. We are in a bit of a rush tonight so I can’t do questions but Eliza and I would like to let you all know that we are officially together. I really wish that we could give you more but it’s a tight schedule. Have a good rest of the weekend everyone!” With that he manoeuvred himself and Eliza away from the press and towards the door. He checked that Lafayette was following and then allowed the secret service to lead them to their car. 

“It’s amazing. I’ve said it before and I will say it again,” marvelled Eliza, “You give them what they need and no more. They can’t get annoyed with you because you work with them but you control them completely.”

Alex smiled gratefully, let go of her and climbed into the car. As soon as they were all in the car, and the screen between the passengers and the driver was up, Lafayette spoke. 

“John sent Alex a FedEx!”

“He did?! What was in it?”

“A picture of Alex blushing and looking adorable along with a note. I took a picture of the picture. It’s my screensaver now,” he added, grinning. He then pulled out his phone to show her. 

“Oh my! Oh Alex you look so cute. Are you giggling?”

Alex groaned, cheeks flushed. 

“He is. He told me that John winked at him and then took a photo of his reaction,” answered Lafayette. 

“He said I have an amazing smile. I nearly cried,” mumbled Alex. 

“Okay, I need to see a picture of this guy. He must be really gorgeous,” declared Eliza, digging her own phone out of her pocket. “You said he was freelance, right? Well I should be able to find him on Google. Aha! I’ve got him.”

“Let me see! Let me see!” demanded Alex. 

Eliza chuckled and handed over the phone. Alex stared at the pictures on the screen and there he was. His literal ray of sunshine was smiling up at him, as pretty as before. 

“He is very pretty, Alex. And he looks friendly.” 

Alex looked at the phone screen for a few seconds longer before sighing and handing it back to Eliza. He turned himself to look out of the window and Lafayette, noticing his friend’s wish to think for a while, distracted Eliza by showing her pictures on his own phone from a wedding he’d been to in Paris earlier that year. Thinking now about the parcel from John and the announcement that he had made at the airport, Alex couldn’t help but wonder if he had made the right decision. He almost wished he hadn’t met John, then he could just continue with the plan without wanting to be able to go on dates with him instead of Eliza. Almost. 

Lafayette, on the other hand, was enjoying himself thoroughly. He was a social creature and being with his best friend and a new friend was doing something great for his spirit. He babbled on about the wedding he had been to, describing the sounds and the feelings and showing off the colours and grandeur. To the Frenchman, even with his best friend looking awfully morose about something, this was bliss. 

On the other side of the car, Eliza was only half listening to Lafayette. The wedding did look lovely but she too was wrapped up in her thoughts. She looked over to Alex and he heart fluttered slightly. It was ridiculous, and accidental, and pointless; he was completely gay and had a crush on a 25-year-old freckled, Southern photographer. She hadn’t meant to, but she could feel herself falling deeper and deeper for Alexander Hamilton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Eliza won't suffer for too long. (Hint: Miss Maria Reynolds)


	12. Chapter 12

The next few days were brilliant for Alex. Spending time with Lafayette and Eliza allowed him to forget about John for a while so that when he did think about the man, he realised how melodramatic he was being on the ride home from the airport. He barely knew John.

On Sunday Alex gave a tour of the university. Lafayette had seen it all before, of course, but Eliza wanted to see it. 

On Monday, as suggested, they had travelled down towards Central Park and walked along Broadway, where he and Eliza had been photographed walking hand-in-hand in and out of shops with Lafayette bounding ahead. 

On Tuesday, Lafayette stayed at the college for the morning, flirting with just about everybody he spotted on campus, whilst Alex and Eliza had breakfast in a Starbucks not too far away. There had been no press but a small boy noticed and recognised Alex. They had taken pictures with him which were posted on Twitter by the mother. During the afternoon they took a walk in central park before returning back to the college dorm, ordering takeout for dinner and watching a bunch of classic movies. 

On Wednesday they grabbed breakfast in the café on campus. Then, at lunch time Lafayette and Eliza left the college to go to the airport, leaving Alex alone for just short of a week before he would be returning to the Whitehouse. He was happy to be alone to be honest. As much as he enjoyed seeing Lafayette and Eliza, having them with him meant they had to do something every day so he still hadn’t really had the opportunity to relax. All he wanted to do now was spend the next few days in one of two places; his bed or the café on campus. Considering that he was already technically out-he’d seen his friends off of the campus-he decided that he would go to the café for at least a little bit. He walked through the college, only passing the few students who were left, and made his way inside. He got a cappuccino and sat down at a table hidden from view. It was warm and comfortable and he was content. Only then did his mind begin to wonder back to John. He was glad to find that his heart didn’t feel so heavy anymore when he thought of the photographer. Despite the promise he had made to John, he was fairly sure they would never see each other again so he was glad that the crush seemed to be retreating. 

The next few days were spent mostly in bed, binge-watching TV shows on Netflix and keeping an eye on twitter. He ate about as poorly as most college students without Burr there to cook him proper meals. He found himself almost missing the git. Honesty, Aaron was alright. Alex just got annoyed with him because he was a fence-sitter on so many subjects that he should have a clear opinion on. Also, he could never really get a clear gage on what Aaron thought of the LGBT+ community and that meant he couldn’t fully trust him. 

By the next Monday, Alex was well and truly ready to go back to the White House. He missed George and Martha dearly. Also, the annual white house correspondent’s dinner would be taking place whilst he was there and it was one of his favourite events. It was so informal and there were so many different speeches from some really amazing people. The only problem with the event was that the official white house photographer would be there and he couldn’t stand the man. Thomas Jefferson was one of the few people who made Alex’s skin crawl. There was just something inherently unsettling about him. If it weren’t for the fact that he was a really talented photographer, Alex was sure that George would have fired him months ago. He also got the feeling that Thomas was far more republican than he made himself out to be but he had no proof for that. 

On Tuesday morning, Alex packed a rucksack with his laptop, his Columbia hoodie and his phone and laptop chargers. He then had a large suitcase that he packed with anything he wouldn’t need in the last couple of weeks he would be there before graduation so that he wouldn’t have too much to bring back after graduation. It was strange, seeing the evidence that he had been living in the dorm for a year start to dwindle. The last thing he decided to pack this time was the photo that John had sent him. 

The trip to the airport was relatively painless, as was check-in, security and the wait for his flight to be called. Whilst he could easily fly on a private plane, he maintained that this way was far more environmentally friendly and from a political point of view, having America’s first son frequent commercial flights showed that the first family hadn’t lost its touch with the people of America. Also, Alex couldn’t bare the atmosphere on private planes when he wasn’t with the rest of his family. On commercial airlines he could just relax and listen to music or read a book. Sometimes he would become engaged in a conversation with whoever was sat next to him; these were the flights he enjoyed the most. On this occasion, he was sat on the aisle seat next to a father and his 7-year-old son. The boy had recognised Alex and asked his dad, rather unsubtly, who he was. When the man saw that Alex had heard, he apologised but Alex simply chuckled and introduced himself kindly to the child. For the duration of the fight he talked to the boy about his school and his friends. At the end of the flight he took three photos before getting off- one selfie with the boy, one photo with the boy taken by the father, and one photo with the boy and the father taken by a stewardess. It was an excellent flight. 

When he arrived back at the Whitehouse, he was welcomed warmly by Martha in the residence and many members of west wing staff cheerfully greeted him on his way to see George in the oval office. The President’s welcome was just as warm as his wife’s. he hugged Alex tightly and made it clear how proud he was of his adopted son for coping so well with everything over the last month. Alex was so glad to be home.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ!  
> Possible trigger warning for this chapter: homophobic language.

The next day Alex spent the majority of his morning just milling about the residence. Martha was out at a convention and George was, naturally, in the oval office, leaving Alex alone to relax. He spent the entire day reading and napping, knowing that the next day would be the start of preparations for the Correspondent’s dinner. It would be nothing more than picking outfits, which would not normally be taxing, but for events such as this one element of outfit choosing was seeing how well they photographed. That meant it would be the first of many days spent with Jefferson. The thought alone made him feel uneasy. He could only hope that Lafayette would show up to help him through it. 

Wednesday was worse than Alex had anticipated. Lafayette did show up, and it really was for the best because without him Alex may have strangled someone, probably Jefferson. He woke up at just before nine o’clock when he got a wakeup call from Kitty. 

“Morning Alexander, the President asked me to make sure you got out of bed before nine and well, it’s about three minutes to. You’re to meet Maria in the mural room in half an hour.”

“The Mural room?”

“I know, I thought it was odd but there are no other rooms out here free at the minute and Mrs Washington didn’t think you’d appreciate Thomas Jefferson being in the residence.”

“Very good point. Okay. Thanks Kitty.”

“No problem, oh one more thing, expect a very loud French man within the next few minutes. Have a good day!” He put the receiver down and readied himself for his friend’s arrival.

“Alexander!” called Lafayette from just outside his room.

Alex sighed and got out of bed, shuffled over to the door, cursing the cold and opened it. Lafayette looked just the opposite to how Alex felt; alive. 

“I brought coffee,” said Lafayette, holding out a large Starbucks cup. 

“I adore you, you know?” Alex replied after taking a sip of the white latte with at least one extra shot of expresso.

“Oui, I thought maybe you could do with the extra caffeine as you will have to deal with Thomas today,” he explained, chuckling slightly.

“You thought right Laf. I don’t understand how you can deal with him. He’s awful.”

Lafayette shrugged in response and walked past Alex into his room. He opened the wardrobe and threw a shirt at Alex. He then did the same with a pair of jeans.

“Drink up, shower and get dressed. You don’t have long before you have to be in the mural room.”

The stylist for the day was actually very nice, in Alex’s opinion. Her name was Maria Reynolds and she was the same age as Alex. Jefferson, on the other hand, was even worse than usual. Maria had picked out an outfit option – a fairly tight-fitting navy suit with a light pink tie – and Alex had changed into it behind a temporary screen they had put up in the room. When he stepped out he heard a loud, pretentious, snort from Jefferson. Both he and Maria turned to look at him angrily.

“What?” snapped Alex at the photographer. 

“The pink tie.”

“What about it?” he asked bitterly. 

“Makes you look like a bit of a faggot doesn’t it?”

Maria and Lafayette gasped loudly. Alex began to visibly shake with anger. He was about to start yelling when someone spoke first.

“What. Did. You. Just. Say?” Maria bit out, flames dancing in her eyes. 

“The tie. It makes him look like a faggot.”

“Seriously?! Did you actually just say that? What kind of vile, obnoxious creep are you? And in Washington’s White House. Fucking hell. I am utterly disgusted and personally offended. I am gay. It actually makes me feel sick that you would use such a derogatory term because someone’s tie is pink! Do you even know what the term means? Do you know where it comes from? Look it up. It’s far more offensive than you think.” She finished her rant and stood breathing heavily. She had been moving towards Jefferson as she’d been speaking and he was backed up against the wall. “Now fuck off.” 

Jefferson let out a disgruntled noise before stalking out of the room. As soon as he did, Alex dropped to the floor with tears in his eyes. Lafayette ran over to him, dropped to floor and wrapped his friend in a hug.

Maria rushed over too. 

“Are you okay sir?” she asked, the fire in her eyes replaced with worry. 

“Yes-I’m okay-I-I,” he closed his eyes and breathed in heavily, attempting to stop the small sobs that were escaping him. “I just, fuck, I can’t believe he said that. I don’t know why I’m acting like this. You, uh, you did well. I probably would have just yelled incoherently before punching him.” 

She chuckled slightly at that. 

“I’m used to it.”

Alex looked her in the eye and made a snap decision. He swallowed and spoke. 

“We shouldn’t have to be,” he whispered.

Her eyes widened slightly before she joined in on the hug. 

“That must be so hard for you, considering who you are.”

“I deal. But that was awful. My God, I always knew he was a dick and I had a feeling he was a homophobe but I still wasn’t expecting that.”

“I am definitely not his friend anymore. You were right mon ami. You should tell George; he would fire him immediately,” said Lafayette. 

Alex nodded. 

“Normally, I wouldn’t. But I know he has a huge safety net of cash to fall back on and a wealthy southern family, so I’m not going to feel bad.”

When George found out he did fire Jefferson immediately. That was definitely one of the best moments Alex had spent in the Oval Office. 

“Right then, as much as I am glad to see the back of any homophobe, we now have an issue. We need to hire a new photographer, and fast. Would any of you happen to know someone?”

Maria shook her head, still in awe that she was in the oval office. Alex didn’t reply at all because Lafayette gasped happily before supplying a name. 

“John Laurens! He was the photographer on the shoot that Alex did last time he was home. Here, I have one of his photos on my phone. It is of Alex.” He was showing it to the man before Alex could stop him. 

George studied the photo and smiled. 

“Go and speak to Leo. He’ll contact Mr Laurens, see if he’d be up for the job.”

As soon as they left the office and the door closed behind them, Alex whacked Lafayette’s arm, hard. 

“What the hell, Laf? You couldn’t have spoken to me before suggesting freckles?”

“Nope. You wouldn’t have let me. And that’s unfair on John. Why stop him from getting work because you have a crush?” he whispered the last part so that only Alex and Maria could hear. 

Alex suddenly felt really guilty for being so selfish. 

“You’re right. Well done Laf, come on let’s go tell Leo,” he muttered.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: homophobic language

The next day, Alex woke up feeling strangely excited, not really sure why. It wasn’t until he was brushing his teeth that he remembered that John Laurens was going to be at the White House is roughly half an hour. He spat the toothpaste in his mouth out, looked at himself in the mirror and swore loudly. Mainly because he now only had twenty minutes to find a new outfit to wear and get down to the West lobby to welcome the photographer. 

As he was pulling on a pair of skinny jeans, he rang Lafayette and put him on speaker. 

“Laf, are you coming in today? Please tell me you can come in today.”

“I’m sorry mon petite lion but I cannot. I have an interview for a job-time to stop living off my family trust fund,” he apologised.

“Ugh. Well that’s good I suppose. Okay, well good luck, I have to go speak to Ang, talk to you later.” He buttoned up his jeans and hung up the phone. 

He arrived at Angelica’s office five minutes before John was due to arrive. 

“Alex, you know that most people in your position would just send a member of Martha’s staff to see me, right?” Said Angelica when she saw him standing in her doorway. 

“I know, but I like being down here and you’re my friend. So, what do I need to do in preparation for the dinner?” 

“Well I need you to check over the seating plan-mainly to check that you’re okay with your table. Oh, you think you could give John the welcome tour? I’ll email you the other stuff-it’s not really essential today.”

Alex nodded eagerly at the prospect of giving John a tour. 

“Okay, cool. Oh and Eliza’s coming in today. She may have to tag along for the latter part of the tour and then I want you two to go and get coffee again.”

“Do we have to? I do love spending time with Eliza but I wanted to spend today with John. I’m the only person he knows so I wanted to be able to take him to see whoever he needs to.”

“I’m sorry, Alex, but this was your decision. Eliza isn’t free again until the dinner so this will be only time you can be seen with her.”

Alex nodded glumly. 

“Okay, well I’m gonna go and greet John. Give me a call when you want us to come back and pick up Eliza.” He left the room and headed to the West lobby at a fast pace, his conversation with Angelica having taken longer than anticipated. When he arrived there were plenty of people rushing about but no John. He checked his watch and saw that John still had a couple of minutes. He awkwardly positioned himself against a pillar, hoping he wasn’t in anyone’s way. Roughly thirty seconds later he spotted a walking smile with curly hair heading towards the desk to check in. Alex nearly fell over as he rushed to meet John. 

“John!” he called over the bustle of people walking through the hall. He held up a hand, knowing that he wasn’t the easiest spot in a busy area. When he finally made it so that he was standing directly in front of the photographer, the smile got impossibly wider. 

“Alexander!”

Alex nearly shivered at the sound of John’s voice. 

“It’s so good to see you,” he exclaimed. 

Alex felt his heart swell. He had no idea why John had such an effect on him, he just knew he never wanted this feeling to end. 

“You too!” replied Alex. He saw the man who had been signing John in put his pen down. “Is that him in Gerry?”

The man nodded. Alex grinned up at John, grabbed his arm and started pulling him further into the building. 

“Come on then! Time for a tour.”

“You’re giving me the tour?”

Alex stopped when he heard John’s question, dropped the man’s arm and turned to face him, grin gone from his face. 

“Yeah,” he answered cautiously, “Is that not okay?” He was genuinely worried that John didn’t want to spend time with him for some reason. 

“No, no of course it’s okay! It’s great, I was just surprised is all.”

Alex sighed in relief, the grin found its way back onto his face and he took off again towards the West Wing. 

“It really is good to see you again Alexander,” John whispered. 

Alex felt a blush start to form on his cheeks. 

“I promised you we’d see each other again. Thank you for the picture by the way. And the note. They were lovely,” he mumbled back. 

Now it was John’s turn to blush. 

“I’m glad you liked them. I was worried you’d find it a bit weird.”

“Nah, it was such a nice surprise in the hurricane of finals. Now, Oval Office?”

John looked at him with wide eyes and slowed his pace, forcing Alex to do the same. 

“Seriously? Will the President be in there?”

“He will. Don’t worry, he’s far less intimidating than he seems. You’re the official photographer now, you’ll have to meet the whole family at some point. We’ll go the residence and see Martha later. Oh, Eliza might be joining us in a while.”

Alex saw John’s smile falter slightly when he mentioned Eliza and it was something he never wanted to see again. 

“Sounds good.”

Alex wanted to move on from the subject as quickly as possible and was very glad when they reached Kitty’s desk. 

“Hi Kitty, this is John Laurens, the new photographer,” greeted Alex. 

“Morning Alex, good to meet you John. That was a nasty business with Jefferson yesterday but I’m sure you’ll be different, seeing as Lafayette recommended you,” she responded, smiling. 

John looked at Alex with a furrowed brow. 

“What happened yesterday? Who’s Lafayette?”

“They didn’t tell you?!” Alex couldn’t believe it. 

John shook his head. 

“Is it okay if we take a seat over here Kitty? How long has the President got?”

“Go ahead, he’s free in five minutes for five minutes, I’ll send Hercules over when it’s time.”

Alex led John over to a row of seats that lined a wall of the room and the two sat down. John raised his eyebrows expectantly. 

“Okay, so Thomas Jefferson-the photographer you replaced-was fired suddenly yesterday because of a homophobic comment he made. I was trying on an outfit for the correspondent’s dinner and it had a pink tie. He said it made me look like a faggot.”

John gasped.

“What the fuck?!” he whispered angrily, “It’s ridiculous that people still use insults like that. It’s why I had to leave my home state. The south is pretty homophobic and you can imagine the hate I got when I was outed.” His eyes widened as he realised what he had said. “Fuck.”


	15. Chapter 15

“Fuck.” 

Alex returned the wide-eyed stare. Internally he was screaming with delight because he knew for sure that John was interested in guys. As John continued to stare at him with panic, he realised that the look he currently had on his face probably wasn’t the most comforting to someone who had accidentally outed himself. 

“Oh! Right, yeah I’m supposed to say something now,” he started, “I don’t care about your sexuality, John. Seriously, I’m fine with it.” He grinned in what he hoped was a reassuring way as when he finished talking.

John visibly relaxed.

“Good. I mean, not that I thought you would have a problem with it but you know, I’m used to the worst kind of reaction, the sort of ‘you’re no son of mine’ kind of reaction. Oh my God, why did I tell you that? Why am I still talking?” He put his face in his hands.

Alex thought he looked adorable. 

“Honestly, it makes a nice change from the sound of my own voice,” he chuckled, “I hope you’re okay now though.”

“I am, thank you. I’m sure I’ll bore you with the story some other time.”

“I look forward to it,” replied Alex with a wink. Now it was his turn to widen his eyes. “Fuck, I really need to stop doing that. Right, where were we? Oh right yeah, you asked me who Lafayette is.” Alex changed the subject before John could determine the meaning of everything that had just happened. “He’s my best friend – he was there at the photoshoot and interview the first time we met. He was skulking by the wall, providing moral support.”

“Moral support?” guffawed John. 

“Yes, trust me, I needed it after the interview. Oh and normally I need it throughout the photo shoot. Photographers are rarely as nice to spend time with as you are Laurens.”

Both men were flushed now, and Alex at least was glad when Hercules walked over and told them that George was free. They moved towards the now open door to the oval office, John trailing behind Alex. John let out an audible gasp as he caught sight of the President. 

“Morning!” exclaimed Alex cheerfully. 

“Ah, Alex, good to see you. I didn’t catch you this morning.”

“Yes, sorry, I had to rush out to meet,” he paused to usher John forward, “Mr John Laurens, our new photographer, I’m giving him the tour.” 

“Yes, of course, Mr Laurens. It’s good to meet you.” He stood up and walked round his desk to shake John’s hand.

“It’s an honour to meet you, Mr President.”

George let go of John’s hand and smiled. 

“You couldn’t have arrived at a better time. The White House Correspondents’ Dinner will be the first of many great events you will be a part of, assuming you are nothing like our previous photographer.”

“No chance of that sir, I’m very gay. Oh my God. I can’t believe I just said that! I’m so sorry, Mr President. I’m really nervous.” John looked as though he wanted to cry.

George, on the other hand, let out a large, genuine laugh and patted John kindly on the back. 

“Not to worry, son, believe it or not, worse introductions have happened in here.”

“It’s okay Laurens, you should have seen Angelica – the press secretary – when she first met him. She ranted about Thomas Paine and feminism for a solid minute before remembering who she was talking to. She then left the room, came back in and introduced herself again.”

“Alex, she made us promise never to mention that again,” chastised George. 

“Just trying to make Laurens here feel better sir,” replied Alex, throwing an arm around John’s shoulder.

George looked at the arm, then at John and finally at Alex. There was a knowing look and a twinkle in his eyes as he looked between them. John didn’t catch it as he was too busy looking around at the office but Alex got the full meaning behind the look. It sat heavy in his stomach and his cheeks reddened. George smiled, almost triumphantly, at the blush. Then, the door opened and Hercules walked in. 

“Sorry sir, you’re needed in the situation room.”

“Thank you Hercules. I’m sorry boys, duty calls. It was really good to meet you John.” 

Alex removed his arm to allow them to shake hands again. George then moved towards Alex and pulled him into an unexpected hug. 

“Be careful, Alexander,” he said quietly in Alex’s ear. He let go and followed Hercules out of the room. 

“On with the tour! Let’s go to the residence to meet Martha.”

They entered the residence together, John still in awe of his surroundings and headed towards the study. Alex knocked on the door and they waited for a response. 

“Yes?”

“Martha? It’s Alex. I’ve brought John Laurens – the new photographer – along to meet you,” he called. He found it weird – introducing John to his ‘parents’. Eliza hadn’t met Martha yet. He felt like there was probably some alternate universe where alternate Alex was introducing alternate John as his boyfriend to his alternate parents.

“Oh hello dear. I’ll be out in a second!” a moment later, the door opened to reveal Martha smiling kindly at the two men. “It’s good to meet you John.”

“You too, Mrs Washington. I’m really looking forward to working with you and your lovely family.”

“Oh my! Alex, what a charmer this one is,” she chuckled. 

“Southern charm, Martha, that’s what it is. Well I just thought I’d introduce him to you and George whilst on the tour, you know, sooner than later,” he explained. 

“Good idea. What do you think of the place, dear?” she asked John.

“It’s really amazing. The entire building is impressive. I’d only seen one room before and that definitely didn’t prepare me for everything else.”

“He pulled a bit of an Angelica when he met George,” said Alex teasingly. 

“Alexander! We made a promise to poor Angelica,” said Martha, “and I’m sure John here didn’t need me to know that. It can’t have been that bad dear.”

“With all respect ma’am, I have to disagree. It was awful. Managed to blurt out that I was gay, not even sure how. Wow, Alexander, look at that. The first person of your family to whom I have come out on purpose. May as well just let everyone know to be honest,” he admitted. 

Martha put a sort of comforting hand on his shoulder whilst Alex just laughed. Suddenly a sharp text tone cut through the air. Alex checked his phone to see that Angelica had texted him. Eliza was there.

“Sorry Martha, we’re gonna have to go – we’ve got to take Eliza on the rest of the tour.”

“Okay love, you two have fun! Say hello to Eliza for me, won’t you? It’s a shame I have a meeting in a few minutes or else I’d come and meet her.” 

Alex shrugged because he didn’t know how to respond with John there before motioning for the photographer to follow him back out of the residence. When they were a few minutes away from Angelica’s office John spoke up. 

“So Eliza has never met Martha?”

“Nope.”

“And now we ‘have to’ go get her?”

“What are you getting at Laurens?”

“I don’t know. Sorry.” 

“It’s okay. I say a lot of things that shouldn’t really be analysed otherwise they sound weird. I didn’t mean ‘have to’.”

In truth, Alex did mean ‘have to’. He was enjoying spending time with John. He couldn’t really tell him that he and Eliza weren’t really dating, because that would suggest that there was a reason Alex wanted John to know that he was actually available. And that seemed a bit ridiculous right now. He didn’t want to ruin anything by suggesting something.


	16. Chapter 16

“So, John, what do you think of our lovely Alex?” 

Alex glared slightly at Eliza as she asked the question, knowing exactly what she was doing. She took the opportunity of John glancing at Alex before answering to wink suggestively at Alex. 

“Oh, erm. He’s great? I mean, this is only the second time we’ve met but he’s been kind enough to show me around,” replied John, avoiding looking Alex in the eye.

“Eliza. Stop grilling him,” said Alex when he noticed the other man’s discomfort. 

Eliza looked to John and noticed it too. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I always get carried away asking questions. I didn’t mean to give you the third degree. I just wanted to get to know you – Alex has talked about you a lot and I’m curious. I have to say, he was right about the smile,” apologised Eliza, genuinely sorry. 

Both John and Alex flushed red when she finished talking. John looked away, trying not to smile but Alex looked straight at her with raised eyebrows and anger in his eyes. 

“It’s okay Eliza. I’m just better at taking questions when I’m sitting down somewhere with a coffee that I can ‘spill’ if I get too uncomfortable,” he joked. 

“It’s funny you should say that! Alex and I were going to get some coffee in a bit, you should totally come with! I really would love to get to know you. And I’m sure Alex would like to spend more time with you today, I kind of crashed the party.”

At that moment, any anger Alex felt towards Eliza for her previous comments immediately vanished. 

“That’s really kind of you but I wouldn’t want to impose-”

“You wouldn’t be!” interrupted Alex. 

“No, you wouldn’t. In fact, I insist you come with us. Alex is buying.” She grinned cheekily at Alex at the last statement. 

“Well, okay,” agreed John. 

Alex smiled gratefully at Eliza. The smile she returned was tighter than he had come to expect from her but she looked away before he could give her a questioning glance. 

“Shall we get going then?” asked Eliza, now looking at John. “We’ve done most of the tour and I’m sure Alex could show you the last few things when I’ve gone.” 

Once again they went to Starbucks but this time they sat far away from the windows. Alex did end up paying for the drinks – a caramel macchiato for Eliza, an iced green tea latte for John and a flat white for himself. 

“So, John. All I know about you is that your favourite animal is a soft-shell turtle – Alex told me on our first date – so tell me some more about yourself.” 

John looked at Alex incredulously before answering Eliza. 

“Well Alexander is right, I do love turtles. Let’s see, I grew up in South Carolina. I have 4 siblings – Martha, Henry, Mary Eleanor and James. My father wanted me to study law but I’ve always had a passion for photography. It actually started with turtles. There was a park a little ways from my house with a load of different turtle species. I couldn’t help but photograph the softshell ones; they’re just so damn weird-looking. My art teacher told me I had a talent for it when I showed her the pictures. So, I pursued the hobby and applied to art school behind my father’s back. What else? Oh, I can’t believe I haven’t let it slip yet. First time today. I’m gay.” 

Eliza just stared at John, a small smile on her face. Alex started to giggle a little bit which set John off. He laughed loud and properly. Alex felt as though he might spontaneously combust at the sound. It probably wasn’t the most melodic laugh; it was hard and he definitely had an ‘ugly’ laugh face, but to Alex everything about it was entirely beautiful. 

“What? What’s so funny?” asked Eliza. At first, neither man replied. They had both stopped laughing but Alex was staring at John, and affectionate smile on his face. John was returning the smile, but his eyes were more confused than anything. Eliza coughed awkwardly and john immediately turned away from Alex, looking guilty. Alex, on the other hand, continued to stare at John. 

“Okay, so when I arrived at the white house this morning, within two minutes of talking to Alex, I accidentally told him I’m gay. Then I did it again when I met the President. He said that the dinner will be the first of many white house events I attend, assuming I’m nothing like Jefferson, to which I replied – bear in mind that this is less than a minute after being introduced – ‘no chance of that sir, I’m very gay.”

Now it was Eliza laughing. 

“It was so embarrassing, I wanted to cry.” 

“Amazing. Oh my God, why did I take so long to visit the White House? So many hilarious things happen.”

“It’s an amazing place. I’m so glad I can spend time there,” said John. John looked at Alex as he spoke but Alex had finally looked away so he missed the sad look on John’s face. Eliza didn’t. She felt entirely sorry for him, knowing exactly what he was feeling. She decided she would have to talk to Alex about everything but was too selfish to do it right away. She’d speak to him after the dinner; she wanted to spend at least one event on his arm, talking to people about their ‘relationship’. Just one night for her to pretend it was all real and then she’d talk.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John tells Alex about his dad kicking him out so this chapter could be triggering for some people.

The following week was spent going through plans and the order of events for the dinner on Sunday. Alex was having a great time despite all of the admin. He had seen John every day at least once. There were a few occasions were Angelica needed them both and those were the days where Alex saw John twice. The rest of the days were when Alex wasn’t needed but he had given John an open invite to have his lunch in the residence with him. It was nice. They would chat casually, and it felt as though they’d known each other for years. Lafayette joined them once or twice but Alex preferred it when it was just the two of them. The more time they spent together, the more Alex’s crush grew. He needed to determine whether or not the feelings were reciprocated but even he understood how oblivious he was when it came to that sort of thing. He hadn’t even had the chance to talk to his best friend about it properly, as the Frenchman had been working. He would talk to him at the dinner. 

The most interesting lunch with John was the Saturday, just over a week since he had arrived at the White House. That day, Alex opened the door to his room when it was knocked on to find John holding up a large pizza. 

“I bought pizza. Just a margarita but still good. Do you still want to hear about the whole ‘you’re no son of mine’ thing?” 

Alex was slightly taken aback by the introduction. Normally, John was fairly quiet when he arrived; allowing Alex to talk for a while before they got into a proper conversation, so this was new. He was definitely surprised that the story he had been promised was being mentioned so soon. Never the less, he nodded eagerly in response. 

“Okay, story time. Come on, let’s go sit down and eat while the pizza’s hot.” 

Alex followed John to the kitchen, still feeling odd about the shift in authority. It wasn’t a bad shift my any means, he enjoyed the fact that John obviously felt more comfortable around him, it was just strange. They sat at the breakfast bar and started on the pizza. It was glorious – piping hot and absolutely covered in cheese. John ate a slice before starting. 

“Right, my father – Henry Laurens – was never really a warm father. I mean, he loved me but he rarely showed affection. When my mother died, he got worse. He and I drifted even farther apart and he even stopped hugging my younger siblings. He stopped reading with Martha, stopped playing with James and Henry Jr. and stopped helping Mary Eleanor get ready in the mornings. Honestly, he could barely look at Martha and I for a while; we both look so much like our mother. He had a plan laid out for me. I was to go to law school and then come home to work as a lawyer in south Carolina. I couldn’t do it. I always hid my love of the arts, knowing he wouldn’t approve. When I first realised I was gay, god Alex, I was so scared-” He stopped suddenly and looked up, attempting to stop the tears that were threatening to spill. 

Alex put down the pizza he was holding and rushed round to sit next to John. He shifted his stool close to the other man’s and pulled him into his arms. 

“It’s okay, Laurens. You’re okay now, you’re okay.”

“I know, I know. Okay,” he continued to speak but neither man made a move to pull away from the hug. “The South is so very homophobic and my father is very religious. He always made his opinions on gay people very clear and I knew he wouldn’t accept a gay son. It wasn’t until I way 18 that he found out. I lied, told him I had applied to Harvard law school but in reality I hadn’t. I’d been accepted by an art school here in Washington, far away from him. One day I came home to find he’s opened a letter addressed to me. It was a letter from the college and he blew up, told me I had disobeyed him and should be ashamed. We got into a massive argument. At some point he asked me ‘is there anything else you haven’t told me, eh? Have you been doing drugs? Have you got some bird pregnant, is that why you’re running away?’. Well of course at that point I was hysterical and just burst out laughing.” At this point John let out a bitter laugh and Alex held him tighter. “He got even angrier. ‘What’s funny, boy?’ he asked. I just said ‘I definitely haven’t been getting anyone pregnant dad. I’m gay’. He didn’t say anything for a few seconds. We just stared at each other. Then, ‘you’re no son of mine. Get out of this house and never come back’. I haven’t – I haven’t seen my siblings since. I miss them so much – I miss –” He started to cry and it broke Alex’s heart. 

For the next ten minutes, Alex whispered comforting words into John’s ear and held him ever tighter. 

“I’m so sorry, Laurens. You don’t deserve that,” he whispered, “I promise you, you’ll see your siblings again. I swear it.”

When the tears finally stopped, John squeezed Alex hard for a few seconds gratefully before finally pulling away from the hug. 

“Thank you Alexander. I’m so happy I have met you.”

“And I, you, my dear Laurens.”


	18. Chapter 18

Alex was thoroughly enjoying the Correspondent’s Dinner. He and Eliza spent the first half hour acting like a couple, sitting as close together as they could as talking lazily to each other in hushed whispers. Once the press moved on to photographing some of the celebrities invited, they moved apart slightly and started two separate conversations. Eliza sat chatting with Angelica whilst Alex talked with Lafayette. 

“Mon ami, have you seen John yet tonight?” asked Lafayette.

Alex shook his head.

“Well prepare yourself. He’s just behind you and I’m worried that if you don’t ready yourself, you will jump him right now.”

Alex took a deep breath before turning around. Nothing could have prepared him for the moment he set eyes on John. He was wearing a slim-fitting maroon tuxedo and he looked utterly gorgeous. Alex let out an audible gasp and turned away quickly. 

“Okay, yep. You were right. God, give me second.”

“Mon Dieu, Alex. Please, do not cry again,” said the French man, only half joking. 

“I’m not, I’m not. Okay, I’m good.” Alex turned around once more and caught John’s eye. The man smiled, causing Alex’s stomach to flutter, and walked over to their table. 

“John! How are you?” asked Lafayette cheerfully. 

“Ah! Monsieur de Lafayette, I am good thanks, how are you?”

“Ah, oui, I am well.”

“It’s good to see you all. Eliza, that dress is stunning.” Complimented John. 

“Oh, thank you John. It’s really good to see you too. We’re going to have to catch up at some point tonight; I want to know how your first week has been.”

“Sounds good! Right, pictures. Alex, Eliza?” He held up his camera and indicated for the two to pose. 

Eliza moved closer to Alex’s side and Alex threw his arm around his shoulder. They smiled widely and John snapped the picture, heart aching slightly. He took several more pictures of different combinations of Angelica, Eliza, Alex and Lafayette before excusing himself from their company, unable to bear witness to Eliza and Alex any longer. He left the room and walked a little way down the corridor. He knew he was being ridiculous, but he had known, from the second he’d met Alex, that the man was going to have a huge impact on his life. He stood for a few seconds longer before pushing away from the wall, intending to go back inside. He didn’t get more than a few steps when Eliza entered the corridor. 

“John! There you are. You looked distressed in there. Are you good?”

“I-erm. I’m good?” It came as a question as opposed to the strong statement he’d wanted. He lifted his hand to scratch the back of his next and gave an unconvincing smile.

“John. You like him don’t you?”

John felt like he was going to throw up. He felt so guilty. 

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about. Who-”

“John!” she interrupted, “Alex. You have feelings for Alex, don’t you?”

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry Eliza. I didn’t mean for it to happen and I feel awful about it. I, erm, I can stop talking to him if you want. I’d understand – if I were you, I wouldn’t want some random gay staring at my boyfriend-”

“It’s okay! John, it’s okay. I don’t mind. You can’t help who you fall for. Truth be told, I don’t think Alex and I are going to last.”

“What, why?”

“I think he has feelings for someone else.” She smiled sadly before turning away and walking back into the dinner. 

John felt slightly ill. Considering how Alex had acted the first time they met, he thought that maybe if it wasn’t for Eliza; if she and Alex had never met, he would actually have a chance. But no, even if Alex didn’t have feelings for Eliza, he had them for someone who wasn’t John. There was no way he could go back in there and face him. He had gotten photographs of everything he needed to – the president’s speech, the other speakers and Alex, Martha and George together – and now he needed to go home. 

John managed to avoid Alex for roughly 17 hours. The next day, just after lunch, Alex arrived at his desk looking vaguely off. 

“Are you okay?” asked the man after a few seconds of just staring. 

“Yes, I’m fine. Why?”

“Well we only saw you briefly last night. I tried to find you later on but no one had seen you. And then you didn’t come to lunch today. I know you texted to say you wouldn’t be, but still. I haven’t said something wrong, have I? I do that a lot – saying things that offend people without meaning to.”

“What? No, Alex. You’ve done nothing. I was pretty tired last night so I left as soon s I wasn’t needed anymore and today I just had stuff to do at lunch. What? What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You’ve never called me Alex before. You’re the only person who doesn’t call me Alex and you just did.”

“And what, Alex? Why does it matter?” John was aware that he was being unnecessarily short with Alex but he had been trying to stay away from him for goodness sake. It wasn’t fair. But when he said ‘Alex’ again, the man’s face fell and it genuinely hurt John’s heart. “I’m sorry. You’ve done nothing, I swear.” He smiled genuinely and felt much better when Alex’s expression changed from confusion and hurt to relief and happiness. John suddenly realised that Alex was far less confident in himself than he appeared. He thought that was ridiculous for in his eyes, Alex was perfect. 

“Okay, good. Well I didn’t just come to make sure I hadn’t said something awful, I also wanted to ask you something. So, I’m going back to college tomorrow and I’m gonna be really lonely until graduation, unless you fancied joining me on the 7th? That way, I get a few days to sort out my stuff ready to leave but don’t get bored out of my mind. I already cleared it with Angelica who cleared it with whoever is directly above you. Of course, you don’t have to, like at all. I know we haven’t known each other for that long but I’d like to feel that I could consider you one of my friends.”

“Of course we’re friends, Alexander. I’d be happy to join you. I’m kind of confused as to why you didn’t ask Eliza or Lafayette but I’m not complaining. 

Alex had been hoping John would mention Eliza. The previous night, when he’d seen John in the suit, he’d decided that he definitely needed to at least try to date him. Therefore, he needed to slowly make it seem as though his and Eliza’s relationship wasn’t going as well as it seemed. It was time to put his plan into action. 

“Lafayette is working and I didn’t really want to ask Eliza.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t really feel like we’re going to last…” So much for slow. 

“Why?” 

“I don’t really feel the same about her as I did when we first met. I feel like we’re friends rather than a couple,” he admitted. 

“Well I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I think I’ve got my eye on someone else.” Alex smiled affectionately at John after he spoke but the other man had looked away. 

“Good luck with whoever it is. She’s very lucky. Now, I’m sorry but I have to go. I’ll see you on the 7th I guess? Okay, bye.” With that John stood up from his desk and charged out of the room. 

Alex watched him go with a strange mixture of surprise, confusion and sadness. He spent the rest of the day trying to work out what all of it had meant.


	19. Chapter 19

By the 7th, Alex was desperate for some company. Burr wasn’t coming back until the day before graduation so he had been alone for nearly a week with his thoughts. For Alex, that was never a good thing. There was only so long that he could distract himself with writing and Netflix for. It was never long before his thoughts started to darken. This time, he had managed to make it to the day of John’s arrival and now he just needed the man there. John was making his own way from the airport, meaning Alex had to wait even longer to see him. By lunch time he was restless; he felt lonely and sort of sad. He was worried that perhaps John had changed his mind, and he was actually still at the White House as opposed to being just over an hour away from arriving at Alex’s dorm. After all, people like John just don’t go with people like Alex. John had a sunny disposition, while Alex was a veritable mess. Their friendship didn’t make sense but Alex had already become so dependent on it. It wasn’t fair. Why had this ray of sunlight been allowed to burst into Alex’s life, leaving him breathless and so utterly helpless? It wasn’t fair. 

By the time John was expected to arrive, Alex was actually pacing his dorm room. He had been for roughly fifteen minutes. John said he’d be there at ten minutes past one and it was twelve minutes past. Every second that went by without a knock on the door caused Alex’s breathing to speed up. His mind was racing, just repeating the photographer’s name. John, John, John, John, John, Jo- There was a knock at the door. Alex suddenly stood still, facing the door. The door behind which John was waiting. His Laurens was waiting. His breathing slowed and he walked to the door and opened it. As soon as they saw each other, each man broke into a smile. Alex wanted to hug John but, aware of the fact that they were very much in public, he simply stepped aside to let him in instead. As soon as John and his bags had stepped over the threshold, Alex shut the door, turned to John (who had now put down his bags), surged forwards, and enveloped him in a hug. John was obviously not expecting the sudden show of affection as he staggered backwards slightly before righting himself and returning the hug. 

“It’s good to see you, Laurens,” whispered Alex. 

“It’s good to see you too, Alexander. Are you okay?”

“I am now.”

John blushed profusely. They stayed like that for a few seconds longer before Alex, seemingly suddenly realising the impropriety of the situation, let go and stepped backwards. 

“Sorry. I was going mad here by myself. I honestly think I would have given Jefferson a hug if he had arrived at my door. My thoughts aren’t always the best company. I’m glad you’re here.”

John’s rush of happiness from the hug diminished greatly when Alex brushed it off as though it didn’t mean anything. It probably didn’t mean anything to him. It meant something to John. He kept the smile on his face, though, as it wasn’t Alex’s fault that he wasn’t into guys, just as it wasn’t John’s fault that he was. It was just something he was going to have to learn to live with. He could do that. 

John couldn’t do that. He had only been at Columbia for two days but it felt like a life time. Every time he saw Alex he just wanted to kiss him and it wasn’t fair. This ethereal being was far too attractive for his own good and John couldn’t take it. It wasn’t fair. 

Alex was also suffering in silence, but he would be lying if he said he was completely unhappy with everything. He was getting to spend time actually getting to know John properly. So far they had gone to the café on campus for breakfast every morning. They would spend a few hours drinking coffee, eating pastries and just talking. He was glad to find that the more he got to know, the more he wanted to date John. Although that was slightly painful for the moment, it was making it easier for him in the long run. Before, he was worried that it wouldn’t be worth losing John as a friend if they didn’t work together but now he could see that it definitely would be worth it. He got to see John shirtless multiple times and after seeing the abs, there was no way he could just be friends with this actual god without going insane. Also, he was more confident that they could actually work. Their conversations flowed easily and they made each other laugh. And, if Alex was reading things right, there was a lot of casual flirting. So yeah, he was suffering, but he definitely had more hope than John. 

The day before Alex’s graduation was certainly an interesting one. Aaron returned to the college and Alex had the best time watching John and Aaron interact. They were so different. Aaron, ever the fence-sitter, was completely taken aback by the very forward and generally excited John Laurens. But that wasn’t the most interesting thing. Aaron being back meant that there was no longer a spare bed and Alex hadn’t thought to get an airbed. That posed a problem: either someone was going to have to sleep on the sofa, which was small and uncomfortable, or John and Alex were going to have to share Alex’s bed. After John determined that there was no way he was allowing anyone to sleep on the sofa, both men readied themselves for a night in the same bed as the person they were crushing on. They turned in at about 11pm, knowing they would need to be up early to go and meet the Washingtons at the airport. Alex climbed into bed first and shifted about as far to one side as he could. A few moments later he felt the bed dip as John got in the other side. 

“Alexander?” John whispered. 

“Yes, Laurens?”

“Erm, I probably should have mentioned this before, but I generally end up hugging whoever I’m in bed with. So, like, if you wake up and I’m hugging you, don’t freak out, just shove me off.”

Alex was very happy with this announcement. He moved more towards the centre of the bed. 

“Alex? What are you doing?”

“Come here.” Alex reached out to pull John towards him. 

John was confused but he obliged and soon found himself right against Alex. 

“Um-”

“Shh.” Alex reached over, grabbed John’s arm, and wrapped it around his own waist. “If it’s gonna happen, we may as well just start out with you hugging me so it’s not a surprise. I wouldn’t want to wake you up by shoving you off in the middle of the night, so let’s get into a comfortable hugging position now and then I won’t have to. Is that okay?”

“Yeah, it’s okay.”

Both men could only pray that the other didn’t realise how fast their heart was beating.


	20. Chapter 20

Alex woke up in nearly the same position he had the night before. The only difference was that he had, at some point during the night, curled into John and his face was buried in the older man’s neck. He didn’t want to move; he wanted to stay next to John forever. He wanted to be able to cuddle John like this whenever he liked. This was the best he had slept in months and it was like Alex was floating on cloud nine, although that may have been because John had just snuggled closer into Alex, completely out of it but with a contented smile on his face. Alex’s alarm hadn’t gone off yet so he decided there would be nothing wrong with closing his eyes, move his arm so that he was properly hugging John back, and going back to sleep.

They both woke up roughly half an hour later when Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ started blasting from Alex’s bed side table. Neither moved for a few seconds as John was silently judging Alex and Alex was silently cursing himself for not changing it. 

“Alex?” started John. 

“Yup?” replied Alex, crying internally. 

“What the actual fuck?” John then started to laugh. 

This, of course, sent Alex into his own fit of giggles. 

“Hamilton!” came a voice from the next room. “Why am I being woken up to Rick Astley and obnoxious laughter through a wall at 8am?”

Aaron didn’t get an answer. Instead, the laughing got louder and the music kept playing. 

“I swear to God, Hamilton, turn that song off or I will come in there and fight you, whether your boyfriend is here or not!”

That stopped the laughter. Alex reached over John, grabbed his phone and stopped the alarm. 

“Sorry about him – he’s a prat – he doesn’t think we’re dating – by the way. Not that you really needed that clarified – he was obviously joking... okay – I’m gonna get up now.” Alex pushed himself away from John and sat up. “Air Force One is landing in roughly an hour, which means we have half an hour before we should leave to meet George, Martha, and Laf on the runway. They will be staying at a hotel nearby but we should get some photos of George and Martha meeting me, after all, today is a special occasion. Do you want to shower first?”

John took a few seconds to control his blush before answering.

“No, you can go first – I’ll make some pancakes and have a shower when we get back instead. You should have some proper food this morning”

“Okay, thanks.” He leaned over, kissed John on the cheek, and stood up. Just as he reached the door, he froze. “Shit. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.” He hurried out of the room without looking back, leaving John leaning against the headboard with his hand on the spot Alex had just kissed. 

He had never been more confused. He sat like that for at least minute, hundreds of thoughts buzzing around in his head. When the sound of the shower turning on shook him out of his trance, he stood up and walked into the kitchen. He brewed a pot of coffee, poured himself a cup, placed it on the counter and walked towards Aaron’s room. 

“Aaron?”

“Come in.”

John opened just enough to poke his head in. 

“Morning. Sorry for waking you up. There’s a freshly brewed pot of coffee in the kitchen and I’m making pancakes if you want any.”

“Wow, you can cook? Huh, Hamilton should keep you.”

John laughed awkwardly. 

“Ha, yeah. About that, you know that we’re not dating, Alexander and I, right? He’s straight, and dating Eliza Schuyler.”

“Ah, yes. Of course, Eliza. But, do you actually know that he’s straight? Have you asked him?”

“What are you saying, Burr?” 

“Oh, nothing. Just, don’t assume anything of Hamilton. Now, pancakes and coffee sound great. I’ll be out in a minute.”

John took that as his que to leave and walked back into the kitchen. Aaron obviously knew more than he was letting on. John had just assumed that Alex was straight, considering that he was dating Eliza, but now he felt guilty. Alex could be bi, or pan, or any number of things. He had already learned that the man was full of surprises and Burr was right; one shouldn’t assume anything of Alexander Hamilton. 

By the time Alex emerged from the bathroom, Burr was sitting at the table with a mug of coffee and a stack of pancakes. John was in the process of making some for Alex. 

“Alexander, how many do you want?”

“How many did Burr have?”

“four.”

“Five please.” 

“Mature, Hamilton,” said Burr sardonically. 

“Why thank you, Aaron Burr, Sir.”

“You suck.”

“You wish,” replied Alex with a wink before going to get some coffee from the pot. 

John turned round to see that Burr was already looking at him with a smirk. John furrowed his brow and turned sharply back to the pancakes, not appreciating how Burr obviously knew exactly what he was thinking. Most straight guys don’t willingly share a bed with other guys, let alone cuddle with their gay friends. Most straight guys don’t make jokes about giving blow jobs without immediately making it clear that they aren’t gay. And most straight guys definitely don’t kiss their male friends on the cheek. He sighed and slid the last pancake onto Alex’s stack. As soon as it landed, the plate was swept up by Alex who immediately sat down and drizzled maple syrup over it. John hated himself for finding that his heart actually ached when he looked at Alex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably gonna post the next chapter today (11/02/2017) too


	21. Chapter 21

The main thing that Alex would remember from his graduation, was the look on George’s face as he was handed his diploma. Lafayette was smiling. Martha was crying steadily into her hankie but that was expected. Alex nearly burst into tears himself when he saw George wipe away a single tear, smiling and full of pride. He had to look away to avoid embarrassing himself and instead looked to John, who was standing near the back with his camera. The man smiled affectionately and Alex’s heart leapt. That wasn’t any better for Alex so he fixed his eyes on the President of the University as he walked across the stage. 

The ceremony was one thing, the after party was something else entirely. George and Martha had returned to the White House pretty soon after the graduation but Lafayette and John were flying back with Alex two days later. The party was held in a bar a short walk from the university and an hour in, Alex was pretty drunk already. 

“I love you, Lafayette. You know that right? Je t’aime.”

“Oui, mon ami. I know. And I love you too but I am far too sober for this. I’m going to get some shots.” With that Lafayette stood up and headed to the bar. He was the most sober of the three of them.

Alex had started off with three curiously purple shots and was on his fourth beer. John had already had two pints of Sam Adams and was working on three. Alex was looking at John strangely, causing the older man to raise an eyebrow.

“You’re really pretty John. You have the best smile and your hair is so….” Alex couldn’t think of the right word so he just made some hand gestures that didn’t mean anything before moving on. “And you have all of these freckles but they’re better than most people’s freckles. It’s like you have stars covering every inch of you.”

“Woah, you need to slow down on the drinking there mate, I’m not sure you know what you’re saying.”

“No, no, John. Laurens, my dear, I’m fine-”

“Alexander. Please, don’t do this. Sober you won’t appreciate you flirting with your male friend. You’ll regret it and then you won’t want to speak to me. And, you have a girlfriend.” 

Just as Alex was about to reply, Lafayette returned with five shots. They were the same purple ones that Alex had started to. He passed one each to his friends before downing the other three himself in quick succession. 

“I saw a very attractive man over by the bar. I am going to go and attempt to make out with him for a bit. I will see you gentlemen later.” Lafayette left again. 

“I need some more purple.” Alex was staggering to the bar before John could stop him. A few minutes later he returned with two more shots. He took one himself and gave the other to John. 

“You are so going to regret these tomorrow,” said John before taking his own shot. 

“It’ll be fine… hakuna matata! I love the Lion King. It makes me sad though. Can you feel… the love… toniiighht. Oh! John, John I have a secret!” Alex sang the song loudly but stage whisper-yelled the last sentence. 

“Do you now?” The alcohol was finally starting to have real effect on John. Everything was slightly fuzzy and his balance was slightly off so he leaned on the wall they were standing next to. “What is it?”

“Eliza and I aren’t dating. We never were,” he whispered, just loud enough for John to hear. “It’s all a – a – ruse. I’m gay.”

Suddenly the fuzziness cleared and John felt like he’d been slapped around the face – hard. The feeling got even worse when Alex suddenly burst into tears. 

“Oh my God, Alexander? Are you okay?”

Alex shook his head. John didn’t need any further encouragement to step forwards and wrap his arms around the smaller man in an attempt to shield him from the world. 

“It’s okay, mi tesoro. You’re okay, you’re perfect. George and Martha still love you, Lafayette loves you, Eliza and Angelica love you. They must all know. Alexander,” John took a deep breath and made the educated guess that Alex would not remember any of this the next day before continuing, “I love you.”

Alex froze slightly at John’s words but soon sank into the man even further. 

“Thank you, John.” He was still crying. 

“I think we should get you home. I’m sure Lafayette would rather stay where he is so I’ll text him to let him know we’re leaving.” John removed one arm from the hug but still held Alex close to him with the other. He fished his phone out of his pocket and shot off a text letting Laf know what had happened but made it clear he didn’t need to worry. “Come on then, little lion.” He stepped away from the hug and ushered Alex towards the exit. 

When they got outside, Alex grabbed John’s hand before walking towards the University. John’s stomach was filled with butterflies and his heart was beating incredibly fast. He now knew that Alex was gay and not dating Eliza. Not only that, he had told Alex he loved him and John wasn’t exactly sure whether he meant it as a friend or if he was in love with Alex. Judging by the way that Alex’s hand in his own was making him feel, it was probably the latter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'mi tesoro' is a Spanish term of endearment meaning 'my treasure'.
> 
> This is a fairly short chapter but it the second update in one day and there is a lot that happens so I don't feel too bad.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for a few chapters of angst,, sorry!

The next morning, John was the first awake. He and Alex had shared Alex’s bed again and he was curled up next to the smaller man. For a few seconds he wanted to stay where he was, contented and warm. Sadly, a few seconds was all it took for him to remember what happened the night before. Alex had told him he was gay. He had, in turn, told Alex that he loved him. John groaned. Loudly. The noise caused Alex to roll away from John, allowing John the opportunity to get up without disturbing Alex. As he stood up, his head suddenly made its presence known by presenting him with a dull, throbbing headache. 

“Joy,” he hissed. Advil and water. That’s what he needed. He sighed and walked out into the kitchen to see that a pack of Advil was already sat by the sink. Attached to it, was a note that read:

John,  
I heard you two come in last night, was going to say hi but Hamilton was crying and stumbling and you were looking rather distressed so I thought better of it. I’m assuming that you are the one reading this as you looked far more sober. Thought you’d appreciate not having to find the Advil yourself.  
A. Burr

John was very grateful for Aaron Burr. He grabbed two glasses of water, using one to take two of the pills himself, and the other was carried back into Alex’s room and placed it on the bed side table along with the rest of the Advil. He then decided to message Lafayette.

09:48  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: So Alex and Eliza aren’t dating?

09:50  
MonsieurBaguette: How did you find out?

09:50  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: He told me. Last night, just before we left. He was very drunk.

09:51  
MonsieurBaguette: Oh. Did he tell you anything else?

09:52  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: He told me he’s gay. 

09:53  
MonsieurBaguette: Ah. How do you feel about that? Do you think he’ll remember?

09:53  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I sure as hell hope not.

09:54  
MonsieurBaguette: Why?!

09:55  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I told him I love him. 

09:55  
MonsieurBaguette: Mon Dieu. Meet me in the café on campus in fifteen. 

 

John put his phone down and swore. He grabbed some clothes and got changed quickly. He then wrote a note for Alex and left it with the water and the Advil before grabbing his wallet and heading for the café. 

He arrived at the café a couple of minutes early but Lafayette was already there. As soon as the Frenchman saw him, he rushed over and pulled him into a hug. 

“It’s okay, mon ami. Come on, let me buy you a coffee.”

A few minutes later John and Lafayette were sitting at a table with a cappuccino each and a double chocolate chip muffin between them.

“So, you told Alex you love him?”

“Yes.”

“Do you? Are you in love with him?”

“I love him. I don’t know if I’m in love with him. I mean, if I just listened to my heart, the answer would be yes, God it would be yes.”

“But?”

“But, my head says there’s no way I can be in love with him because I’ve only known him for a short while.”

“Oh, John. I am very French, I think, when it comes to the affairs of love but I think that it is never too soon to fall in love with someone. Always listen to your heart when it comes to these things.”

“Okay, I’m in love with him.” John suddenly felt sick. He had just said he was in love with Alex out loud. “What do I do?”

“Tell him.”

“Nope. If he has forgotten about last night, I am definitely not reminding him, and you aren’t either. I need a while to process. I can’t deal with this right now.”

“Okay, mon ami. I will keep my mouth shut. But please, think about telling him. I don’t want this to eat you up. It could make your friendship toxic and you are the best thing that has happened to Alex in a long time.”

“I’ll think about it.”

When they finished their coffee and the cake, Lafayette and John headed to Alex’s dorm together. They arrived and knocked on the door. It was opened by Aaron to reveal Alex lying on the sofa groaning. 

“Keep it down, fuck,” Alex moaned. 

“I said you’d regret all of the purple,” chuckled John. 

“God, I don’t remember anything after arriving at the bar.”

John wasn’t expecting to feel disappointed when he heard that. Obviously some part of him was hoping that Alex would remember and then profess his love too. He looked over to Lafayette with a slightly pained expression. 

“I’m gonna… I’m just… bathroom,” mumbled John before speeding out of the room.

Alex sat up and looked at Lafayette. 

“Is he alright?”

“Oui. He is fine.” 

John wasn’t fine. Now that he had realised he was actually in love with Alexander Hamilton, the other man not knowing was painful. He wanted to tell Alex, he really did, but he didn’t see that there was any point. If Alex felt even remotely the same, if John mattered enough to him, he would have told John. He would have told John that he and Eliza weren’t dating, that he was gay. So no, there was no point in risking their friendship for something that would never happen. He was so screwed.


	23. Chapter 23

Due to Alex’s hangover, the three of them didn’t go anywhere all day. They sat on the sofa watching Disney movies. They started with Hercules, requested by Lafayette, then Mulan, Pocahontas, then The Aristocats, and finally the Lion King. John had felt slightly ill when the last one was suggested, remembering his conversation with Alex the previous night, but had agreed to watch nonetheless. Alex had stayed silent until the stampede. 

“Laurens! Hold me,” he cried, flinging himself on to John. “I’m going to cry and Lafayette is no good at comforting me.”

John, unable to speak, simply nodded and positioned himself so that Alex was lying practically on top of him, hugging into his chest. He shot a panicked look at Lafayette who simply smirked and faced back towards the screen. Alex hadn’t been kidding, as soon as Simba found Mufasa, sniffles filled the room and John could feel his shirt getting damp. 

“It’s okay Alexander,” he laughed, rubbing the man’s back sort of awkwardly. Alex didn’t move once the sad scene was over. In fact, he stayed exactly where he was, cuddling John, for the majority of the rest of the film. It was John, in the end, who had to stop the hug. They had watched Simba grow with Timone and Pumba quite happily but then Nala had arrived. The instant Alex began to sing ‘can you feel the love tonight’ John was up. He had knocked Alex on the floor but he didn’t apologise, instead he walked straight out of the dorm. 

“Lafayette. What’s wrong with him? I know you know.” 

“He is, uh, sad. He is in love with someone and has convinced himself he cannot tell them. That song was probably not very fun.”

“Oh.” Alex felt deflated. “Is that what you were talking about at breakfast?”

“Oui.”

“Why can’t he talk to me? We’re supposed to be friends.”

“That, mon ami, I cannot help you with.” 

“Okay. I’m just gonna – I – I” Alex caught himself before he started crying. “I’m going to go and find him.”

Alex walked around the campus for around half an hour but couldn’t find John anywhere. He called the man for the fifth time and once again, there was no reply. 

20:13  
AdamSandler: John, please. Answer your phone, or at least tell me you’re okay. I’m worried. 

He sighed and pocketed his phone. The next place he could think John might be was the bar from the night before. He texted Laf to let him know where he was going and walked towards the bar. It was a short walk, meaning John could have been there for half an hour. Alex was worried about the state of sobriety he would find John in. 

When he arrived, the bar was pretty full. It was mostly people from the college who were probably going home within the next few days. It was at times like this that Alex wished he weren’t so short. It would be hard enough to find John in all of these people for someone as tall as Lafayette. For Alex, the task seemed impossible. Or so he thought. There was a sudden cheer from a crowd surrounding a table. Alex looked over to see what they were cheering about and his heart stopped. It was John. John Laurens was standing on top of the table, dancing and kissing some guy Alex had never seen before. Alex felt sick. He left the bar and practically ran back to the university. 

When he burst back into his room without John, Lafayette went to ask a multitude of questions but Alex just pushed past him and flopped onto his bed. Tears started to fall down his cheeks and he felt pathetic. 

“Mon cher?”

“Not now Lafayette. I can’t deal right now. Can you just leave? I’m sorry but can you just go back to your hotel? I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Lafayette left without a word, not angry, just worried. 

Alex was angry. He was angry with John for making him worry. He was angry with John for making him feel so pathetic. He was angry with himself for falling for John. He was angry. 

John arrived back a few hours later and Alex was still awake. The man walked into Alex’s bedroom smelling like alcohol and, as Alex discovered when he switched on the lamp, he had multiple hickeys on his neck. John didn’t say anything. He just flopped down next to Alex and sighed. He then turned to Alex and smiled, opening his arms questioningly, inviting Alex into the hug that they slept in every night. Alex scoffed and stood up. 

“I’m sleeping on the sofa. I hope you had a good time tonight. I know I fucking didn’t. I’ll see you in the morning Laurens.” 

“What did I do?” slurred John. 

Alex scoffed again and left the room. John kicked off his shoes and got under the covers. He spent the hour it took him to get to sleep tossing and turning, feeling guilty but not really being sure why. He missed sober John. 

Alex grabbed a blanket from the cupboard in the bathroom and laid down on the sofa. It was really uncomfortable. He was really angry and it took him far longer to get to sleep. After around half an hour he realised that the uncomfortable lump in the sofa digging into his back wasn’t in fact a lump in the sofa, but the remote control. He ripped it out from under him and threw it at the wall. It wasn’t even the fact that he’d caught John kissing someone else making him angry; that just made him hurt. He was angry at John for going out and getting drunk without telling anyone and then not coming home for hours. If John had have gone to any other bar, Alex wouldn’t have been able to find him and he’d have been scared shitless for hours. 

Actually, Alex was probably most angry because in the middle of this hurricane of emotions, he still wanted to go and cling to John, the eye of his hurricane, for as long as he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Expect another chapter today (13/02/2017)  
> I'm going to Belfast later so I'll update when I arrive (I'm hopefully gonna get some writing done on the plane but if I don't I still have the next chapter ready to go)


	24. Chapter 24

The next morning was a mess. Lafayette had arrived at 9 and dragged John out of bed because Alex refused to. 

“Come on, mon ami. Alex needs to pack up all of his stuff and we have to leave in an hour and a half,” encouraged Lafayette. 

“Ugh. Do I have to get up? Why can’t I sleep while he packs up?”

“Um. He is not very happy with you at the moment so I suggest you let him get on with it.”

“What?! Why is he mad at me?” John sat up but immediately regretted it when his head began to pound. “God, how drunk did I get last night?”

“I do not know, neither Alex nor I were there. Well, I think Alex found you but didn’t get you because he came back here fuming.”

It took John a few minutes to remember the events of the evening. 

“Oh, right yeah. I sort of stormed out of here during the Lion King.”

“Oui, and poor Alex spent nearly an hour trying to find you. I don’t know what he saw but it didn’t make him happy.”

John groaned at picked up his phone from the bed side table. He had six missed calls from Alex and multiple texts. The last one read ‘John, please. Answer your phone, or at least tell me you’re okay. I’m worried.’ 

“Fuck. I was upset so I was ignoring his calls. It wasn’t too long before I was too drunk to realise it was probably worrying. He must have come to the bar. I guess me dancing on a table wasn’t what he was expecting. God that must have looked really bad, ‘hey sorry Alex, I can’t answer your calls I’m too busy grinding on some stranger’.” He put his head in his hands. “I should go and apologise.”

“You can try. Do you have a scarf with you by the way?”

“What? No, why?”

“Take a look in the mirror.”

John stood up, utterly confused and walked over to the mirror hanging on the wall. “Shit,” he said as his eyes landed on the multitude of hickeys on his neck. “I must have been really drunk. Well, that’ll be fun in public, oh well. I’m gonna go apologise.” With that he walked out of the room and found Alex pouring himself a cup of coffee. He coughed to get the man’s attention. Alex span round with startled eyes that quickly became angry. 

“Can I pack now then?” 

“Yeah, I guess. But first, I wanted to apologise.” He brought his hand up to his neck. 

Alex’s eyes followed John’s hand and landed on the hickeys. They suddenly stopped being angry, as such, and instead glazed over in a look of indifference. It was worse than the glaring and it made John feel like shit. 

“Glad to see you had fun last night,” Alex said with absolutely no mirth in his tone. He definitely wasn’t glad. “So much fun that you couldn’t send me a single fucking text to let me know that you were okay? You storm out of here, leaving me on my ass, and go to the nearest bar? Seriously?! Were you purposely ignoring me? Purposely trying to make me worry? Because if you were, then Jesus Christ it worked and it was childish. I spent over half an hour walking around the campus looking like some kind of deranged idiot, checking my phone every few seconds. I thought you must have gotten yourself into trouble, there’s no way you’d make me feel like that on purpose. I guess I was wrong about you because I didn’t find you beaten up in some alley, no I found you making out with some other guy on a table.”

“‘Other’ guy?” John hadn’t meant to fixate on that, but the phrasing was suggestive and it threw him.

Alex’s face fixed back into a glare. He walked straight into his room, knocking John’s shoulder on the way. Lafayette stalked out of the room a few seconds later. 

“That went well then?”

“I fucked up.”

“Yes. You did. Alex wants me to let you know that he’d rather you didn’t speak to him for a bit. There was practically steam coming out of his ears so I’d suggest you listen.”

“Okay.” John felt like he was going to cry but he stopped himself. This was his fault and he didn’t want it to seem like he was throwing a pity party. “I didn’t mean to upset him, Laf, you know that right?”

“I know. But you can see why he thinks you did it on purpose? When Alex trusts, he trusts completely. It will probably take a little while before he’s willing to listen to your apology.”

“I love him, I’m willing to wait for it.”

The flight back was incredibly awkward. Lafayette tried his best to start conversations with both of his friends but eventually gave up and they spent the majority of the time in a tense silence. 

When they landed, Lafayette and Alex got in a car sent by the White House but John didn’t join them. He maintained that it was because he wanted to drop his bags home before going back to work but everyone knew that he just couldn’t bare being in a car with Alex not talking to him. 

“He’s sorry, you know,” said Lafayette part way into the car journey. 

“I know. But I’m still angry.”

“But are you angry about the whole kissing someone else thing? Because you don’t have the right to be angry about that.”

“No. I’m angry that I could have spent hours worrying where he was. It was only because I managed to find him that I didn’t spend the night scared that he was lying half dead somewhere. The kissing just hurt me, Laf. I’m in love with him and I know that he doesn’t know that so I can’t be angry about the kissing. Wait. Did I just – fuck.”

“Oh, Alex.”


	25. Chapter 25

Alex didn’t speak to John all of that week. When Eliza and Alex called it off publically on the Friday, he thought maybe Alex would be willing to talk but he was wrong. Alex didn’t speak to him the next week either. By the third week of being ignored, John felt broken. It hurt seeing Alex actively avoid him. There had been multiple occasions when John had been called to Angelica’s office and arrived to find Alex sitting inside, chatting happily with her. John would knock on the door, Alex would turn to see who it was, the smile would immediately fall from his face and he would leave the room, making some half-assed excuse that no one believed. Yeah, three weeks of that was enough. John was determined to do something, which is why he had called Lafayette to meet him at the same Starbucks he had sat with Alex and Eliza in a few weeks before. 

“I have to talk to him, Laf. I can’t do this anymore.”

“Okay. Why do you need me?”

“It’s his birthday in 6 days. I’m going to speak to him then, and I need you to help me get him the perfect present. You know him better than I do.” 

“Ah, well Monsieur Laurens, you have come to the right place. Alexander Hamilton is one of the many things that I am an expert in. Sadly, I cannot come to find a present with you – I have work. I can give you some tips and then you can take someone else who has an eye for these things?”

“Thank you, that’s fine.”

“Okay, well Alex, he likes old things. You know? First edition books, really nice stationery. Also, some hair ties – just as a nice little extra, he always loses his.” 

“Perfect.”

“Oui, I have one request. Please take Eliza with you, she’s been out of sorts, how you say, at a loose end? Since she and Alexander broke up.”

John sighed. He did really like Eliza, but despite the fact that she and Alex were never really dating, he couldn’t help but still feel jealous of her. Maybe he was jealous of what she represented; if Alex weren’t gay, they would be perfect for each other. They were equals and they fit together so well. She was also exactly the kind of gorgeous, well-educated, classy girl that the nation would expect Alex to be with. John didn’t think that he and Alex were perfect for each other by any stretch of the imagination. As far as he could tell, they both felt too much. He was sure that they would burn out sooner or later. But, if Alex returned any of his feelings, he believed that the man would be worth the heartbreak. 

“Okay, I’ll call her. Thanks Laf.”

“It’s okay. I’ve been worried about Alex since you two stopped talking. You were good for him.”

John couldn’t help but blush at that. He coughed awkwardly and Lafayette laughed. 

“Au revoir, mon ami.” And then Laf was gone. 

John texted Eliza. 

13:47  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Hi, Eliza. I was wondering if I could get your help with something?

13:49  
ElizaSchuyla: Hey John! Of course, what is it?

13:50  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I need to get a birthday present for Alex. Laf gave me some ideas but he said I needed to take someone who knew what they were doing with me. And I think that’s you. Feel free to say no but I just thought we could get something to eat too, I haven’t seen you since you and Alex split and I miss you.

13:51  
ElizaSchuyla: If it were anyone else I’d say no. You’re lucky I like you and I miss you too. Were you thinking today? 

13:52  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Miss Schuylar, you are a saint. I hadn’t really thought about when. I’ve already eaten today, so probably not now. Is Saturday good for you? We have a load going on at the White House this week, so I probably won’t be able to escape for the afternoon before then.

13:53  
ElizaSchuyla: I know I am John, I know. Saturday is perfect for me. 

13:54  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Marvellous! I was thinking either 14th st or Georgetown? 

13:54  
ElizaSchuyla: Let’s do Georgetown, it’ll be more like a proper trip – 14th is so close to the White House

13:55  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Okay. I’ll text you at some point this week to sort out the exact details. Thank you for this. 

13:56  
ElizaSchuyla: Any time, John. Any time. 

John put his phone into his pocket, stood up, threw his cup away and walked back to the White House. 

John Laurens wanted to cry. There was a group of students who had won some competition to visit the White House and he was taking the pictures of them and the President. The problem was that Alex had been dragged into the photo op. That meant that John had to spend half an hour taking different photos, seeing the smile that had drawn him to Alex in the first place. It was painful. That wasn’t even the worst part. The worst part was that George had obviously sensed some of the tension because he had been glancing oddly between the two the entire time, and when everyone was leaving, he called John back. 

“Yes, Mr President?” he asked when the door closed, leaving just the two of them. 

“What’s going on, son? Between you and Alex, I mean.”

“I don’t know what you mean, sir.”

“Don’t try that with me, Mr Laurens. I am your commander in chief and I want to know what has happened.”

John swallowed nervously. 

“We, erm. We’ve had a sort of fight, sir.”

“What do you mean? About what?”

“That is a very long story, sir.”

“Well, then, as I don’t have much time, I suggest you are exact and concise, and I will be attentive.”

“I can’t really give the details, sir, without compromising myself-”

“If the details are, Laurens, that you are in love with my son, then I already know. I see the way you look at him. I’m assuming from the look you are currently giving me, that I am correct and I therefore ask that you tell your story.”

“Erm. Well, I guess it starts the night of the graduation, at the bar we went to. Alexander was slightly drunk and singing the lion king. I sort of accidentally told him I love him but he didn’t remember the next day. I guess a part of me wanted him to remember. Anyway, we ended up watching the lion king and when Mufasa died, he kind of grabbed me for support, so we stayed like that until ‘can you feel the love tonight’ at which point he started singing, the same as before. It was messing with my head so I stood up and left. It was a complete overreaction. I went to the bar from the night before. I ignored the first of Alexander’s calls and texts because I was being childish but then I got too drunk to realise that he was probably getting worried. Anyway, he came to find me after searching the campus for a while and I guess me dancing on the table wasn’t exactly what he expected. From what I gather, he left, went home and was angry. Then I came back a few hours later, very drunk and he hasn’t spoken to me since.”

“Right. Are you going to try and fix this?”

“Yes sir. I’m going to speak to him on Monday – I’m getting him a birthday present on Saturday.”

“I hope for both of your sakes, you sort this out. You can leave.”

“I hope so too, Mr President. Thank you.” John left feeling a little better. He was glad to get it off his chest and at least he knew that if he and Alex were to date, the President didn’t seem too adverse to the idea.


	26. Chapter 26

Saturday the 9th of June, two days before Alex’s birthday. John and Eliza were sitting in a bistro in Georgetown, ready to find the perfect apology present. They had arrived two hours prior and had a catch up over some food. John was surprised by how much he was enjoying spending time with Eliza. They were waiting for the bill and talking about the White House. 

“Oh my God! John, I’ve just realised, you work at the White House,” Eliza gasped. 

“Yes, a little worrying that you’ve only just noticed.”

“No, I mean, I knew you worked there, but I’ve just realised that it means you might know this girl that I saw there the day Alex and I broke up. She had curly, brown hair and bright red lipstick. She was helping Mrs Washington with some event, a stylist or something? Please tell me you know who I’m talking about.”

“Was she wearing a red dress?”

“Yes! You know her?!”

“Yeah, that’s Maria, Maria Lewis. She does the styling for all of the Washington family. And me, at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner.”

“Oh, so that’s why you looked so good. No offence, but you hardly strike me as the kind of person to pick out a maroon tux for themselves.”

“Very true. So yeah, I know Maria, why?”

“She’s gorgeous and I want to marry her. Well, maybe not marry her – we’ve never met – but still. Do you know if she’s single? Or interested in girls?”

John stared at Eliza with wide eyes. She looked back confused before realisation dawned on her face and she chuckled. 

“Oh yeah, I’m bi, by the way.”

“Right, sorry, just surprised. You always looked so infatuated with Alex, shit, sorry. Shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, it’s alright. We’re still friends. In another time or universe, maybe we’d be together…”

“But, he’s gay, I know.” 

“You know?!”

“Yeah, he let it slip whilst he was drunk.”

“Oh my God. You two should not be allowed near alcohol,” she laughed. 

“Probably not,” he replied, laughing too, “Oh, and Maria is both single and gay.”

Eliza’s smiled got even wider, if that were possible. 

Just then, the bill arrived. They fought for a while over who was buying and in the end Eliza won. (“John, I’m paying. You need to save money for this perfect present you’re buying.”)

They left the bistro and walked about, dipping in and out of shops but nothing was sticking out as present material. Roughly forty minutes into their search, Eliza grabbed John’s arm and dragged him across the street to a small shop. It was a stationers, a posh one by the looks of it. 

“Isn’t this exactly the kind of stuff you said Lafayette suggested?” asked Eliza, excitedly. 

John nodded in response. 

“Well come on then.” She pushed the door open, causing an old bell above the door to ring out, loud and clear. 

John trailed after her. A few steps into the shop he was hit by a smell that reminded him of home. If he had to describe it, he would say it smelt like the library at his family home. His family came from old money, so the smell assured him that this shop was exactly the kind of thing that Lafayette was talking about. They walked around for a few minutes before something caught his eye. It was an expensive-looking, leather-bound, hand-made, journal. It was a dark green and, on closer inspection, John found that there was an intricate, swirling design on the front. It reminded him of Alex for some reason. 

“Eliza?”

Eliza appeared next to him and gasped. 

“This is it, isn’t it? This is what I get him.”

“Yes, my God, it’s gorgeous,” she breathed, “How much is it?”

John looked up to the price list hanging on the wall. 

“$45. Oh wait, I can get it monogrammed for $5 more.”

“That’s quite expensive, John. I’m sure that we could find something else-”

“It’s Alexander.”

She looked him in the eye and nodded, understanding exactly what he meant. 

“Okay.”

He picked up the journal and wandered over to the till, where a small, old lady was sitting. 

“Hello, dear. How can I help you?” she smiled kindly. 

John held up the journal. 

“Hi, I wanted to get this but I was wondering how long I would have to wait to get it monogrammed?”

“I can have it done by tomorrow for you? You could come back and collect it from 11 until 3.”

“Yes, that would be lovely, thank you.”

“Okay, dear. Here, that’ll be $50, you write down the initials on this,” she said, sliding a piece of paper over. 

He took $5o from his wallet, handed it over and wrote ‘A.H.’ on the paper. 

“Wonderful, thank you. Is it a present?”

“Yes, a birthday present.”

“Friend? Family? Girlfriend, boyfriend?” 

“Uh, my friend, Alexander.”

“Lovely. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“Yes, thank you, again.”

“No problem dear.”

John smiled and walked away from the till to find Eliza standing by the door. 

“Do you need to get anything else?” she asked, smiling. 

“No, I’ve already got him the other thing that Laf suggested – some hair ties.”

“Good,” she replied, chuckling, “He always used to steal mine.”

The left the shop and John found himself missing the warmth and the smell. They walked back towards the metro. 

“Thank you for today, I really enjoyed it,” remarked John. 

“You’re welcome, I had fun,” replied Eliza, beaming. 

John went to sleep that night buzzing. He couldn’t wait to collect Alex’s present and then it was only a day to wait before he could gift it. One day more, and then he could speak to Alex.


	27. Chapter 27

Sunday dragged. John didn’t have to go into the White House and he woke up irritatingly early. He spent two hours watching TV and checking the time every five minutes. At ten o’clock he had a shower and got dressed. At twenty three minutes past ten, he pulled on a pair of shoes and left his apartment. At thirteen minutes to eleven, the bell to the shop he and Eliza had visited the day before rang out as John pushed it open, and he was hit with the familiar smell once more. 

“Oh hello dear! You here to collect the journal?” asked the same old lady. 

“Yes, I was wondering if you had a recommendation of a nice pen to go with it? Something I could buy here?”

“Of course, dear. Follow me.” She began to lead him towards the back of the store. “This is an awful lot to spend on a birthday present, are you sure he’s just a friend?”

“Uh, well, he is just a friend, but I suppose I wouldn’t mind being more than friends, I’d really rather like it actually. And this is an apology as well as a present.”

“I see. Well I hope he forgives you then, dear.”

They stopped in front of a glass display case holding a few dozen gorgeous fountain pens. 

“Here we are. There is a dark green one there, the same as the book, it’s a bit pricey, mind - $60. We have another range over here, not fountain pens but-”

“No, this one is perfect. I’d happily spend all of my money on him.”

“He’s a very lucky man. You go and wait at the till, I’ll get you your journal and box you up one of these pens.”

John smiled gratefully and meandered back to the till. He hadn’t meant to spend so much but he had a fair amount of cash saved from the amount he managed to take from his bank account before his father disinherited him and cut him off. He was intending to save up to buy plane tickets for his siblings to come and visit him, but that would have to wait. Alexander was his priority at that moment. The old lady returned to the till after about five minutes holding the journal and a gorgeous velvet box that held the pen. 

“That’s $60 then dear, here, I’ll gift wrap them for you.”

John thanked her and placed the $60 dollars he had out ready on the counter. He watched in fascination as the items were wrapped. They were first wrapped in red tissue paper, then placed in a white box with the shop’s name – ‘Hobson’s’ – in gold lettering. The box was then wrapped in black paper and tied off with gold ribbon in an expert bow. The woman put the box in a carrier bag, took the money, and handed John the bag. 

“Good luck with your Alexander.”

“Thank you.”

He left the shop feeling very happy with his selection of presents. He only hoped that Alex would forgive him. 

Alex was sat in Angelica’s office. She wasn’t in there yet; she was at a press briefing. He was about to leave and go bug someone else when she arrived. The moment she set eyes on him, her expression softened. 

“Oh, Alex. You look awful.”

“A charmer as always, Miss Schuyler.”

“I’m serious Alex, have you not been sleeping?”

“Not really. It’s been a rough few weeks.”

“John?”

“John.”

“You should speak to him.”

“I’m waiting for him to come to me. I want to see if he does. I know how I feel and me going to speak to him won’t help me determine how he feels.”

“How do you feel, Alex? You barely speak to us about yourself and I’m worried.”

“I feel like shit to be quite honest with you, Ang. I’m in love with him, if that’s what you’re asking, and I’m pissed off.”

“I know. You probably don’t want to hear this right now, but he’s going to have to be at your party tomorrow night, he’s working.”

“It’s fine. I’ve avoided him until now.”

“How is he supposed to talk to you if you’re avoiding him?”

“He stopped coming anywhere near me, stopped looking at me, a week ago. I haven’t had to avoid him since then. I’ve only been waiting since then.”

“Will you let him speak to you tomorrow? I know that if I were him, I’d take the opportunity of having to be around you to speak to you. I hear that he and Eliza went shopping yesterday, she mentioned something about a present.”

“Really? Wow. Honestly, if he doesn’t speak to me tomorrow I’ll probably end up going to him despite my promise to myself that I would wait. I miss him. A lot. How is Eliza, by the way? We haven’t really spoken since…” he trailed off, feeling slightly guilty. 

“She’s okay. You did the right thing, breaking it off when you did. You could tell, couldn’t you?”

“That she had real feelings for me?”

Angelica nodded. 

“Yeah, I could tell from pretty early on. It became really obvious when I was spending all of my time moping about John. I couldn’t do it anymore, I care about her too much.”

“I know Alex, you don’t need to defend yourself. It was the right time. Any longer and it may have been too hard for her to get over.”

Alex nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, short chapter so I'll update again in like an hour (It's currently 19:31 GMT)   
> Secondly, feel free to hit me up on social media:  
> IG: personal - @ catletley  
>  fan account - @ themarquisdelafayette  
> Twitter: @ cat_letley   
> Thirdly, boy, tomorrow's update (17/02/2017) is gonna be great


	28. Chapter 28

Monday the 11th of June. Alex woke up to the sound of George and Martha singing ‘Happy birthday to you’ loudly and awfully. He appreciated the gesture though, especially George’s high note at the end. 

“Thanks,” he said, laughing. 

“You’re welcome love! Here, get up, there’s presents and cinnamon rolls in the kitchen,” beamed Martha. 

Alex didn’t need telling twice, at the words ‘cinnamon rolls’ he was already up. He hugged both of the Washingtons before rushing past them, getting faster as the smell of the food got stronger. Behind him he could hear George’s deep chuckle. 

By the time Martha and George reached the kitchen, Alex was already half way through his first roll. 

“I believe Gilbert should be here in a moment, but go ahead and open your present from us.”

Alex put down the cinnamon roll he was holding and wiped his hands on his trousers. Martha rolled her eyes at that. He reached over to the gift and pulled it towards himself. The wrapping was meticulous, and a bow had been tied delicately around it. 

“I take it George had nothing to do with the wrapping, then?”

“Watch it, young man.”

Alex laughed and undid the bow. He ripped the paper quickly, earning another eye roll from Martha, to reveal something he couldn’t yet identify wrapped in a rainbow gay pride flag. He let out a genuine laugh as he carefully removed the flag from its contents and wrapped it round his shoulders. One he had it tied securely around his neck, he moved on to the rest of the items. There were a few items of clothing that weren’t wrapped in anything else – two shirts and a dark green hoodie – and then a large box wrapped in rainbow wrapping paper. 

“I’m loving the gay,” he grinned. 

“That was the one part of the wrapping George helped with – he came up with the flag idea and picked out this paper.”

Alex smiled up at George who was already smiling back. 

“God, I’m going to cry there’s too much acceptance,” Alex joked. 

“Just open the damn present or I’ll cry and we don’t want to see that. Look at the leader of the free world, reduced to tears by some gay wrapping paper.”

Alex ripped the paper on this package as before and gasped as a MacBook box was revealed. He opened the box quickly to check that it wasn’t a prank and was very pleased to find a chrome MacBook Pro sitting in front of him. 

“I love you guys. Thank you.” He hugged them both, proper, long, tight hugs before returning to his seat and demolishing the rest of the abandoned cinnamon roll. 

“I’m proud of you son, oh just let me say it,” grumbled George, “Now, I have the small manner of running a country to attend to so I hope you have a good day and I’ll see you both tonight at the party. Alex, Maria should be coming to the residence in about an hour with some outfit choices.” With that, he grabbed a cinnamon roll and left. 

“He’s proud of you, Alex. We both are. Now I’m sorry but I have to dash off too. I’ll be back in time for the party though, don’t worry, I won’t abandon you with a load of stuffy dignitaries.”

“Martha!”

“You know it’s true. Right, I’ll see you later!” 

Just as Martha walked out of the kitchen, Lafayette walked in. Alex jumped down from his stool as Lafayette held out his arms for the long-ago-established obligatory birthday hug. 

“Happy birthday you tiny man!” exclaimed the Frenchman, lifting Alex in the air as if to prove his point.

“I hate you.” 

“Well then, I guess you don’t want your present. That is a shame.”

“Laf.”

“Fine, here.” He held out a parcel. 

Alex smiled triumphantly and took the parcel. The triumphant smile became a look of amazement when he opened it to reveal a leather bound novel. It was a really expensive-looking Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. 

“Oh my god Laf, this is amazing, it isn’t a – oh shit it is. It’s a first edition. Holy crap I love you.” He placed the book carefully on the side before launching himself into a hug once more. 

“I love you too, mon ami. I like the flag, by the way.”

“Ah, yes. George’s present. I think it’s sort of his way of reminding me that he is okay with the whole gay thing without saying it – he’s shit at feelings and stuff. Right, I’m taking this off, grabbing another cinnamon roll – help yourself by the way – and then we are going to see Angelica before returning here in time for Maria to help me decide what to wear later.”

“Sounds good!”

When they arrived at Angelica’s office, she forced them to wear party hats so that she could take a picture and post it on the White House social media accounts. She then gave Alex a present. 

“Oh, Ang, you didn’t have to.”

“Alex, we’ve been friends for years, of course I did.”

He smiled at her and ripped open the packaging. Inside was a really nice pair of black, leather shoes. 

“Wow. Thank you.”

“Shut up,” she snapped jokingly before pulling him into a hug. “Happy birthday, little man.”

“I’m not enjoying all of the short jokes today.”

Maria arrived shortly after eleven with at least five garment bags. She dropped them onto the first surface she could find and turned to Alex. 

“Happy birthday!” She pulled him into a hug, surprising him but making him happy. 

“Thank you! That’s a lot of clothes.”

“Yeah, I have more in my car just in case but let’s see if we can find something here.”

The first two suits that Alex tried on didn’t fit him well. The third wasn’t his colour and the fourth clashed with what Lafayette had planned to wear. He hoped that the fifth was perfect because he didn’t want poor Maria to have to go and get more from her car. She unzipped the bag and pulled out a navy tuxedo. 

“Let’s hope this is the one, eh?”

Alex disappeared into his room once more to change. When he stepped out, he could tell my his friends’ faces that the tux was perfect. Laf had an impressed smirk and Maria looked ready to cry with relief. 

“This is it then?”

“That’s it,” replied Maria. 

“The guests won’t know what’s hit them,” added Lafayette. 

Alex didn’t care about impressing the guests. He was hoping that one photographer wouldn’t know what had hit him.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!

John felt like he was going to throw up. He had just arrived at the White House to find the party in full swing but Alex wasn’t there yet. The present was tucked carefully under his arm and it honestly felt like a ticking time bomb pressed against him. Alex was due to arrive in ten minutes. John would photograph his entrance, follow him around to take some pictures of him greeting some important guests and then hopefully he’d have a chance to speak to him before the food was served. 

“How are you feeling?” came a voice from beside him. He didn’t have to turn to identify who was speaking to him as they had a heavy French accent. 

“Like death. How is he?”

“He misses you,” answered Lafayette. 

“He does?”

“Like crazy. You are still going to speak to him tonight, oui?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

The chatter around them stopped and John looked to the front of the room to see the President standing at a microphone. 

“Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming tonight. Please join me in welcoming my son, Alexander!”

John handed the present to Lafayette and jumped away from his spot near the wall to get into position, ready to photograph Alex as soon as he came through the door. The large doors opened and the room burst into applause. John nearly didn’t manage to take a picture because his heart practically stopped when he caught sight of Alex. The tux he was wearing fit him in all of the right places, causing John to stare open-mouthed as he took the photos. When he had the shot he wanted, he stood up straight and let his camera hang freely around his neck. He nearly had a heart attack when Lafayette spoke from just behind him. 

“Close your mouth, mon ami. You’ll catch flies.”

He spun round and glared at Lafayette. 

“I wasn’t staring.”

“Right, and I am from England. Just take your damn present and do your job.”

John had to trail around for forty minutes before he finally got the chance to speak to Alex. He took the final photo he needed for the time being – Alex with the English ambassador – and took the opportunity of Alex looking around for a few seconds trying to spot Lafayette to rush forwards and get the man’s attention. 

“Uh, could we maybe talk? Somewhere slightly more private?” he asked nervously, expecting to be turned away. His heart leapt when he saw the ghost of a smile cross Alex’s lips. 

“Yeah, I think that’s probably a good idea. Come on, let’s go to the residence.”

John nodded and followed Alex as he slipped past a group of guests and out of the room. They walked through the corridors and John marvelled at how different the White House looked when there weren’t staffers rushing about everywhere. When they reached the residence, Alex dragged John into the kitchen and turned to look at him expectantly. 

“Oh, right, yeah. Talk. Well first, happy birthday.”

“Thank you.”

“I, uh, I got you a present.” He held out the box which Alex took slowly. “Just, uh, wait a second before opening it. I just want to say I’m sorry. You were completely right about that night, I was being childish. I was ignoring you on purpose, at first. After that I was too drunk to realise that you might have been worried. I would never intentionally hurt you. You can open it now.”

Alex gave a sort of smile, but his eyes were unreadable. He carefully opened the present, taking care not to rip the paper. His breath hitched when he saw the name on the box. 

“This isn’t actually from Hobson’s is it? It’s all so expensive in there and-”

“Just open it.”

“Right, yep. Sorry.” He lifted the lid and pushed the tissue paper so he could see the contents. When he saw the book he gasped audibly and took it from the box, turning it over carefully in his hands. “Oh my, John, it’s gorgeous. And it’s initialled. Wow, thank you.” Lifting up the journal had revealed the box containing the pen. “Jesus, this is too much, John, I-”

“Please, just finish with the opening so we can actually talk,” John interjected, sounding slightly desperate. 

Alex nodded and lifted the velvet box. His eyes flickered up to John for a moment before he pushed the lid open.

“Holy shit,” he breathed, “This is amazing. These are both so amazing. They must have cost you a fortune.”

“They cost a fair bit, but it’s you.”

Alex went wide eyed at that and John had to look away; the look was too intense. 

“Well, I’ll definitely get the use out of them. I forgive you, by the way. I overreacted too, I guess, nearly a month of radio silence was probably a bit much. There was other stuff going on, other stuff going on in my head and it made the whole thing, finding you where I did, a lot harder.”

“Yeah, about that, you said ‘other guy’.”

“What?”

“When you were ranting at me, the morning we came back, you said you found me making out with some ‘other guy’. What did you mean by that?”

“I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“Oh.”

John wasn’t sure whether he believed Alex or not. He looked around the room to avoid eye contact and something stood out against the chrome fittings. 

“Alexander? What’s that?” He pointed to a piece of material hung over a stool. 

“Shit. I meant to put that away. Fuck.”

“Hey, it’s okay. You’ve already told me.”

“What?”

“The party after your graduation. You were really drunk and you told me that you’re gay.”

“You’ve known? All this time? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I didn’t see the need to really. I didn’t want to embarrass you or anything. I was waiting for you to confide in me sober, I guess. I’m kind of confused as to why you didn’t to be honest.”

“Hey! You can’t be annoyed that I haven’t confided, what about you, eh? Lafayette told me that you’re in love with someone. Why didn’t you speak to me about it?”

“Because I couldn’t.”

“So you could speak to him, but not to me?”

“Pretty much.”

“Well that fucking hurts, John.” Alex turned away from him, but not before John could see the tears in his eyes. “Why can’t you speak to me?” he whispered, sounding slightly broken. 

John made a split second decision. 

“For fuck’s sake,” he whispered to himself before walking round in front of Alex. He lifted his hand to Alex’s face and rested it so that his thumb could trace the man’s cheekbone. Before he could change his mind, he leant down and pressed his lips against Alex’s, quick and chaste but firm and meaningful. “Because it’s you,” he whispered when he stepped away, “it’s always been you.”


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There's quite a lot of swearing in this chapter, just be warned. Mostly f**k and derivations of that.

“Alexander please say something. Scream at me, hit me, kiss me, I don’t know! Just do something.” 

“You – you just kissed me?”

“I’m glad you noticed.”

“You’re in love with me?”

“Yes. God I’ve fucked everything up haven’t I. I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have done any of this. I should go.”

“Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare leave me again. Come here you fucking idiot.” Alex grabbed a fistful of John’s shirt and pulled him close. “I love you too.”

John could have jumped for joy at those four words but any conscious thought that would have allowed him to do so faded away as Alex pressed their lips together for a second time. They stood like that for a few minutes, pressed together, putting all of the emotions each had felt over the last month into the kiss until John pulled away to breathe. They stayed close though, foreheads touching, eyes closed and breathing heavy. 

“No homo?” offered John, laughing. 

“Oh, fuck off,” returned Alex breathlessly, “All the fucking homo, all the fucking time.”

“I’m up for that.” 

“I love you, wow that’s great to say out loud.”

“I love you. So much.”

“It’s not a competition, Laurens.”

“Okay, okay. As much as I want to make out with you and tell you that I love you forever, we should probably get back to the party before someone notices we’ve gone.”

Alex closed his eyes and inhaled deeply before stepping backwards. John missed the proximity immediately. 

“You’re right. God, why couldn’t we have sorted this out earlier?”

“I don’t know. Although, I’m pretty sure that Angelica, Maria and Laf were betting on when this would happen, so if taking so long means that Laf loses, I think I can deal,” joked John. 

“Those fuckers. Come on then, back to normality.” 

John stepped forwards and kissed Alex on the forehead before he could turn to leave. 

“Oh my God! You are the perfect height for forehead kisses, I am living,” exclaimed John cheerfully.

“I hate you,” mumbled Alex in reply, but he contradicted himself by kissing John one last time before walking back towards the party, John following close behind. 

A few metres away from the door to the party, John quickened his pace to overtake Alex, whispering “you look really fucking good in that tux by the way, Alexander,” as he did. 

Alex glared daggers at John’s back as he had to walk into the room with a very obvious blush on his cheeks. 

“Merde!” swore Lafayette from a couple of paces away. 

“What?” replied Alex, confused by his friend’s anger. 

“I didn’t think he’d do it. Not until next week anyway. Laurens just cost me $50.”

“So you were betting on us then? And hey, surely the fact that your best friend is no longer pining helplessly is more important than your money. Who’d you lose it to anyway?”

“You’re right, mon ami. I am very sorry and very happy for you. I told you that tux was the right choice,” he said, smirking, “and I don’t think you want to know who I lost to”

“Come on, who was it? Angelica or Maria?”

“Neither.”

“Huh? Well who else was betting?”

“Alex, you really don’t want me to tell you,” assured Lafayette with a laugh. 

“Laf. Who was it?”

“The President of the Unites States!” laughed Lafayette before rushing off, no doubt to let Angelica know that she’d lost too. 

Alex looked around to try to find George. When he finally laid eyes on the man, he was already staring back with a smirk on his face. Alex crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, asking ‘really?’ across the room. George just winked before turning back to whatever conversation he should have been paying attention to. Alex shook his head and walked over to where John was standing by himself, leaning against a wall and watching the world go by. 

“You were right about the betting.”

“Idiots,” chuckled the older man, “who won?”

“Well, as it turns out, you missed one person. It seems that the President of the United States bet $50 with two staffers and a croissant on us.”

John stared at Alex with wide eyes before letting out a loud laugh. 

“Oh, that’s priceless,” he cried, “At least we don’t have to do the whole awkward reveal, right?”

“That’s true I suppose. He looked fairly happy too. I still can’t believe that the leader of our country is such a child though.”

“It’s the first lady that really runs the country though, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, that’s true as well,” admitted the shorter man. “I’m gonna go and find them. I probably shouldn’t spend the whole evening skulking in the shadows with the photographer.”

“Probably not. Just before you go, I’m sure we can agree that a lack of communication caused a bunch of problems, right?”

Alex nodded. 

“Right. Well, I can’t go through that again, so I just wanted to ask if we could talk about the whole you being in the closet thing fairly soon? I’m not going to be asking you to come out or anything, I just want to know where we are, know what the boundaries are, yeah? So that I don’t do something that makes you resent me and I don’t spend any time resenting you because I’m hiding myself more than expected? I don’t know if that made any sense but-”

“It made perfect sense. We have a lot of talking to do, after all if we are going to do this, it’s going to be a hell of a lot more complicated than most relationships. Look, I have to go – Martha’s trying to get my attention – but I swear we’ll talk as soon as possible. I can’t go through lack of communication hell again either. I’ll try and catch you again later, but if not, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

John smiled as Alex walked away, feeling at ease and confident, the complete opposite to how he had started the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, whoop whoop it's the weekend - expect double updates today and possibly tomorrow  
> Secondly, Dear Evan Hansen is absolutely amazing. I've basically been listening to it on repeat for a week. Seriously, the song 'you will be found' just makes me cry but in a happy way.  
> Lastly, I'm going to continue to plug my instagrams and twitter:  
> IG: @ themarquisdelafayette  
> @ catletley  
> Twitter: @ cat_letley


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kind of fluffy but then kind of a filler so it's not very exciting, sorry!

Alex didn’t manage to catch John again for the rest of the evening and John was busy editing the photographs he had taken all morning so they didn’t see each other again until lunch. As soon as John put the pizza he’d brought down on the kitchen counter, Alex grabbed his hand and pulled him into a kiss. 

“I still can’t get over the fact that I can do that,” whispered Alex when they moved apart, “I can just kiss you whenever I want.” He proved his point by pressing another quick kiss on the corner of John’s mouth. 

“I mean, I wouldn’t suggest that you do it on the front steps of the White House, or anywhere of the like, but yeah. It’s great, isn’t it?”

“Definitely, the greatest. Right, I’m hungry and I said we’d talk, so let’s eat and talk.”

John didn’t move for a few seconds; he just stood and watched Alex with a stupid grin on his face, only sitting down when Alex started on the pizza. 

“So,” started Alex when he was half way through his first slice, “Closets. You understand why I’m not out, right? I’m kind of very much in the public’s eye and I definitely don’t want to do anything that could risk unnecessary bad press for George. Now, he’s assured me that if ever I do decide to come out, he will support me. I always told myself that there was no point coming out until I’m in a relationship. I’m not exactly sure what,” he motioned between the two of them, “this is, that’s something else we’re going to have to sort out, by the way, but assuming it’s a relationship, I think we should wait a bit, see where it’s going, before making any big decisions. Does that sound okay?”

John felt like his heart was going to burst. 

“That sounds more than okay. It’s better than I was expecting.”

“What did you think I was going to say?” asked Alex, incredulous. 

“I don’t know, uh, ‘I can’t come out until the President is out of the White House, now let’s go hide in a closet for a few years’ I guess?” replied John, laughing slightly awkwardly. 

“Well, we’re definitely not doing that. I’m glad you’re okay with what I actually said. I’m still sorry it can’t happen right away.”

“It’s fine, Alexander. I’m willing to wait.”

Alex gave John a soppy grin before finishing his slice and picking up another one. John, who had been eating whilst Alex was talking, was on his third. 

“So, what is this?” asked John, “You brought it up so I feel like you get sort that out.”

“Well played, Laurens. I know what I want it to be. You’re going to make me say it aren’t you? Oh fine, John – wait, what’s your middle name?”

“Henry.”

“Okay, John Henry – really? Your dad gave his name to two of his children?”

“Alexander!”

“Fine, sorry. John Henry Laurens, will you be my boyfriend?” 

“I suppose so.”

“You suppose?” 

John let out a loud laugh at Alex’s tone. He stood up an leaned across the table to plant a kiss on the shorter man’s forehead. 

“Of course I will, you moron.” 

Alex grabbed John’s hand before he could sit back down again, intending to pull him in for an actual kiss. Their lips had just brushed when a loud, French voice rang throughout the residence. 

“Alexander, John? Your favourite person is here!” 

They jumped apart at the sound of another person but relaxed when they realised it was only Lafayette. 

“Nous sommes dans la cuisine, mon ami,” called Alex. 

A few seconds later a very excitable French man appeared in the kitchen doorway. 

“Mes amis! I am so happy for you both, this is wonderful. You two are together now, officially, non?”

“As of about two minutes ago, yes.”

Lafayette clapped his hands gleefully. 

“C’est magnifique! Ooh, pizza!” He rushed forwards and took a seat next to Alex, immediately taking a slice of pizza. “Now, if only we could get Hercules to fall in love with me, everything would be perfect.”

“You can hardly speak two words to him, Laf, good luck trying to make him fall in love with you.”

Lafayette sighed and flopped onto the table melodramatically. 

“It is true! I do not understand it.”

“I don’t care about your troubles in communication, I’m only glad that you’ve moved on from George,” laughed Alex. 

“What?!” asked John, half-yelling. “Lafayette had the hots for the President?”

“Oh, oui, mon ami. He is so handsome and powerful and kind and-”

“And that’s enough,” interrupted Alex, placing his hand over Lafayette’s mouth with disgust written plain across his face. “Just because you have some weird kink, doesn’t mean you have to share.”

Lafayette let out an indignant noise in protest, slightly muffled by Alex’s hand. John stared at the two of them, an amused grin on his face. Alex finally removed his hand when Lafayette trod on his foot under the table. The three of them demolished the pizza fairly quickly, their conversation taking many different turns. John had to leave first, needing to get back to work. Lafayette’s lunch break was a little longer and started a little later so he stayed for a little longer.

“You seem very happy. John is good for you,” he observed. 

“I’m happier than I ever remember being.”

“Are you going to come out? Tell the public?”

“Not yet. I’m going to give it a month or so, make sure that this is going where I want it to.”

“Ooh, and where is that?” 

“Honestly? I’m hoping that he’s the one.”

“Oh, my dear Alex, growing up so fast!” cried Lafayette, throwing his arms around Alex.

“You’re ridiculous,” Alex replied, shoving him off. 

“I have to go now, I’ll see you soon.” With that, Lafayette left, taking the last slice of pizza with him. 

Alex sighed. Now that he could have John, he didn’t want to be without the man. 

13:12  
AdamSandler: I miss you.

13:13  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: It’s been 10 minutes… I miss you too.

13:14  
AdamSandler: I haven’t spoken to George yet, somehow. Haven’t had the chance. I think I’m gonna to that now. I’ll stop by your desk on the way back. 

13:14  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Good luck and I can’t wait ;)

Alex couldn’t stop smiling as he walked through the West Wing to the Oval Office. He stopped by Angelica’s office to reprimand her for making bets on his love life. 

“I’m sorry, Alex, but it’s not as if I got anything from it. I lost $50.”

“I can’t believe that you bet with my adoptive father. You’re lucky I didn’t find out before John and I got together, I’m too happy to care.”

“So you’re together, then? Properly?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s wonderful but please be careful. I don’t want to get caught in a scandal. If you’re not coming out straight away then I need you to not do anything that causes suspicion.”

“I know. We’ll be careful. I’m going to wait for like a month, make sure he’s what I’m looking for.”

“Okay. Well as soon as you decide, come to me and we’ll sort it out, yeah?”

“Yeah, thanks Ang. I’ll see you later, I’m off to talk to George.”

When Alex arrived at Kitty’s desk, she informed him he would have to wait for a few minutes for George to get off of the phone with the British Prime Minister. He walked over to where he and Lafayette had been waiting all those weeks ago before Alex came out to George and Martha. Five minutes later, a voice sounded from inside the office. 

“Alexander?” George called.

Kitty sighed and Alex looked up to her. 

“He realises that he can call through to here via his phone, instead of yelling the place down, right? You can go in.”

Alex laughed and thanked her before walking in to the Oval Office.


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm a few hours later than I would normally be in posting this, I came back from Belfast today and haven't had much time to do anything.

“Alexander! I’m glad to see you, I’m sorry I didn’t catch you at breakfast – duty calls and all that,” apologised George.

“It’s fine, I didn’t get up until late anyway.”

“That’s a new experience for you! This Mr Laurens is obviously having an extremely positive effect on you.” 

“Ha! Twenty seconds. You couldn’t wait more than twenty seconds to bring him up! And that wasn’t even a smooth transition.”

“I know, it really was appalling,” laughed George, half-ashamed, “Well then, are you going to tell me? I may be the President but that doesn’t mean that I don’t love a good bit of gossip.”

Alex stared at George with raised eyebrows. The man looked genuinely brim-filled with glee. Alex suddenly had no qualms with talking to George about John. It was an odd thing, especially considering how scared he had been to come out. 

“I asked him to be my boyfriend over lunch. He said yes.”

“I’m proud of you, son, er, Alex, sorry.”

“Oh, you know what, you call basically everyone son. Just knock yourself out.”

George froze for a few seconds and stared at Alex before his mouth split into a grin. He stood up, walked around his desk and pulled Alex into a hug. 

“I’m proud of you, son.” He stepped backwards and lent against his desk. “Now, I would like to have a word with this boyfriend of yours. Tell him to come and see me in half an hour.”

Alex groaned but agreed nonetheless. 

“You can’t have expected me to just move on. I simply want to get to know him in the context of my son’s new boyfriend, rather than my photographer. What are you going to do about coming out, by the way? You remember what I said?”

“Yes, I do. I’m going to wait for a while, though. Wait until I’m certain that John and I will last. I was thinking a month, just to sort it all out.”

George nodded approvingly for a moment before his eyes suddenly lit up, as if he’d just had a brilliant idea. Alex eyed him sceptically. 

“What? What have you realised.”

“Oh, nothing. Just, it’s Washington Pride in a month, and LA Pride for that matter. If you were to come out publically, they would provide the perfect opportunity. Preferably the LA parade – the press would all be drawn there meaning they’d be less likely to come knocking down my doors here.”

Alex considered for a few seconds. He had always wanted to go to LA Pride and he always had a certain appreciation for dramatic flair. Coming out at one of the world’s largest celebrations of the LGBT+ community would certainly be a spectacle. 

“That would be great. I’ll speak to John, I think. Thank you George, I really appreciate that you’ve been so accepting.”

“It’s just common human decency, son. You shouldn’t have to thank me for acting the same way I would if you were straight. I love you, and nearly nothing you could do would change that.”

Alex’s heart swelled with a great amount of affection for his adoptive father. He stepped forwards into another hug. 

“I love you too. I’ll see you later.” Alex stepped away and walked out of the office. He greeted Hercules on his way past and headed for John’s desk. 

When he arrived, John was texting someone and he looked angry. 

“John? Are you alright?” he asked tentatively. 

John jumped slightly and rushed to lock his phone. 

“What? Oh, right, yeah. I’m fine, just my dad. He suddenly wants me to go home, says he’s found someone who can fix me.” John let out a bitter laugh before shaking his head. “I’ve told him to shove it.”

“Shit, John. I’m sorry. You deserve a much better father than that douchebag. Speaking of fathers, mine wants to speak to you.” Alex changed the subject, sensing that John was done talking about Henry Laurens Sr. 

“What? Why?”

“I think he wants to give you the shovel talk. Said to go and see him in half an hour. That was five minutes ago though, so he wants you to go and see him in twenty five minutes,” whispered Alex.

“The shovel talk?! I don’t want to get given the shovel talk by the President of the United States,” returned John in a panicked whisper.

“Well, you’re dating his only ‘son’ so I’m afraid it’s rather non-negotiable,” shot back Alex, “besides, he’s all bark and no bite. He’s actually really happy about the whole thing.”

John’s entire face lit up at that and Alex felt like he was being blinded. This ray of sunshine, the eye of his hurricane, literally lit up his life and he was in awe at his boyfriend’s radiance and brilliance. He must have been staring because John’s expression became quizzical. 

“What?”

“Nothing. You’re just beautiful, Jesus Christ. It’s like unfair how pretty you are, John Laurens. Sometimes I have to stop and admire the view.”

John hid his face in his hands to hide his blush and God help Alexander Hamilton because John Laurens giggled. 

“You’re so cheesy, I love you,” he mumbled, face still in his hands. 

“Only for you, Laurens. George mentioned something else that might be worth discussing.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, you know how I said I wanted to wait a month or so before coming out? Yeah, well George pointed out that it’s LA pride in a month, just under actually. He said that it might be an idea to come out at the event? I mean, I’ve always wanted to go, and it would be amazingly dramatic, like something out of a film. So, if you think that would be okay, then I can keep it in mind, but if not then I can forget about it.” 

“That would be pretty awesome. I would not be adverse to it in any means, I can only hope that we make it there.” 

John was smiling, as though he were joking, but Alex could see that there was a genuine fear behind the words, a fear that he wasn’t good enough. Alex got the feeling that John’s father had told John that he wasn’t good enough more than once before, and the notion filled him with rage. He kept it in though and just smiled at John. 

“I’ve got to go now, my dear Laurens. You need to get back to your work and I need to not be standing here staring at you for the next twenty minutes; someone would get suspicious. I’ll call you later. Don’t forget to go and see George.” 

And if John Laurens spent the next few seconds admiring the retreating ass of Alexander Hamilton, well nobody needed to know.


	33. Chapter 33

“Ah, Mr Laurens. I’m glad you’re here, I trust you know why I’ve asked to see you?”

John nodded. He knew exactly why he was there and he wished that he could be anywhere else. Despite Alex’s reassurances that the President was happy, he didn’t look it. George Washington was staring at him with a look that could only be described as intimidating indifference. 

“Good. Alexander may be adopted, but I love him like he is my own and I will not hesitate to bring the full wrath of the President of the United States down on anyone who should hurt him, you understand?”

John nodded again. He couldn’t bring himself to reply verbally for fear that nothing would come out. 

“Do you love him?”

This time a nod of the head wouldn’t be enough, John could tell. He cleared his throat and spoke. 

“Yes, sir. I do. It’s actually rather ridiculous how much I love him. He’s an extraordinary man and a great credit to you and your wife, Mr President.”

George’s look of indifference transformed into a grin. 

“Thank you, son. I apologise for the scare tactics, but I couldn’t bear to see his heart broken.”

“It’s fine sir, I understand. I intend to love your son for the rest of my life and if I ever hurt him, well I’d be willing to accept the consequences,” replied John genuinely. 

“I’m extremely glad to hear it. I knew I liked you,” returned George with the same sincerity. 

John felt as though he could cry. He hadn’t expected such kind acceptance from the President. He had expected to have to suffer through months of icy stares until the man finally gave him the benefit of the doubt. 

“I appreciate that, sir. Alexander is lucky to have a dad, albeit an adoptive dad, who cares so much. I only wish that my father was so accepting.”

“Oh? I wasn’t aware of any issues with your father.”

“I don’t make a habit of telling many people, sir. My father is a very right-wing republican. He doesn’t agree with my ‘life choices’. Of course by ‘life choices’ he means my sexuality – he disowned me when he found out.” John surprised himself with the amount of personal information he was revealing. 

“I’m so sorry to hear that, son. You should be proud of yourself, for getting to where you are even with all of that going on. And, as long as you and my son are together, you can consider yourself one of the family. We’ll have to have you round for dinner soon.”

“Thank you, Mr President, I would like that.”

George smiled kindly. There was definite pride in the smile – something that John had never seen in a father-figure – and it made his heart swell. 

“I’ll have Alexander let you know the details. Thank you, John.”

John returned the thanks and walked out of the office, head held significantly higher than it had been when he walked in. When he got back to his desk, he pulled out his phone to text Alex. 

14:12  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: You were right

14:13  
AdamSandler: The Shovel Talk™?

14:13  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: The Shovel Talk™.

14:14  
AdamSandler: You good? He wasn’t too harsh was he?

14:15  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I’m brilliant. You have the best father in the world. 

14:15  
AdamSandler: I do?

14:15  
AdamSandler: I mean, I know I do, but what did he say to make you say that?

14:16  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: He told me that he likes me, I should be proud of myself, and I should consider myself one of the family. I nearly started sobbing then and there.

14:17  
AdamSandler: Well then, Oliver Twist, I’m glad. And of course you should be proud of yourself, you’re amazing. 

14:17  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I love you. 

14:17  
AdamSandler: I love you too. I’ll talk to you later.

John smiled with contentment and pocketed his phone once more. He got about ten minutes of work done before his phone buzzed again. He was surprised to find that it wasn’t Alex, but Eliza. 

14:29  
ElizaSchuyla: John!

14:29  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Eliza!

14:30  
ElizaSchuyla: Guess what!

 

14:30  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: What?!

14:30  
ElizaSchuyla: You know Maria?! Maria Lewis?

14:31  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Yes??

14:31  
ElizaSchuyla: So, it turns out that someone (pretty sure it was Ang) gave her my number…

14:32  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: And?!?!?!?

14:32  
ElizaSchuyla: I HAVE A DATE WITH MARIA LEWIS

14:33  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: OH MY GOD ELIZA I’M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!

14:33  
ElizaSchuyla: I’m literally so happy! We’re getting coffee in like half an hour so I have to go get ready but just thought I’d let you know!

14:34  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Get it Eliza! Have a great time!

14:34  
ElizaSchuyla: <3 <3 <3

John placed his phone down on his desk and got back to work with an even bigger smile on his face. He was genuinely so happy for Eliza; she deserved everything she wanted and more. He was having an excellent day. He had a newfound energy that spurred him to finish editing the photos from Alex’s birthday by five o’clock, meaning he could send them to Angelica who would deal with them: getting staffers to put them on the website, on social media etc. He also printed off his favourite of Alex, George, and Martha ready to frame as a gift that he could present as an icebreaker if he was invited for dinner. Doing so suddenly reminded him of the photo he’d sent to Alex. God that seemed so long ago. He picked up his phone again. 

17:12  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Did you keep that picture I sent you? The one I took the first time we met?

17:13  
AdamSandler: Yeah, it’s taped to the inside of my wardrobe door. Why?

17:15  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I was just wondering. I just finished editing the pictures from last night and it made me think of it. 

17:15  
AdamSandler: Oh, well of course I kept it - you gave it to me :)

17:16  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: You’re so cheesy. 

17:16  
AdamSandler: You love it ;)

17:17  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I do. 

Yeah, John was having an extremely excellent day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was really short and mainly just texting, sorry! But there was a good bit of fluff and the whole George being a Dad with a capital 'D', so I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Follow me on Instagram:  
> @ catletley  
> @ themarquisdelafayatte
> 
> and twitter:  
> @ cat_letley


	34. Chapter 34

The dinner took place that Friday evening. George couldn’t be there until seven but John was invited to the residence for six. He hadn’t seen Martha since he and Alex became an item and part of him was nervous. He knew that the woman was kind and he got on well with her but he also knew that there was a raging storm inside her that she reserved for anyone who hurt her family. He arrived at the residence just before six, as he and Alex had planned, allowing him time to slip into Alex’s room and change; he couldn’t be seen entering the residence wearing a suit and clutching a bottle of wine without raising suspicion. Joe – the member of the first family’s security detail – said hello to John with a smile and let him in to the residence with no questions. 

“Hey! You’re here,” greeted Alex, moving in to press a quick kiss to John’s lips. 

John smiled at his boyfriend, pleased with the welcome. 

“I’m here,” he whispered, looking at Alex with such adoration in his eyes that the shorter man almost had to look away, as if it were too intimate an expression for even him to be looking at. Almost. Instead, he returned it for a few moments before ushering John into his room. 

“We’re in the kitchen – Martha’s cooking – so just come in whenever you’re ready,” instructed Alex. 

John took the opportunity of Alex stepping backwards to roam his eyes over his boyfriend’s body. Alex was wearing dress trousers and shoes along with a shirt and a dark green blazer. He couldn’t help but lick his lips, tongue just darting out for a moment. Alex didn’t miss is though. John looked up to see that Alex was flushed and looking rather self-conscious under the scrupulous gaze. 

“You look gorgeous.”

“Shut up and get changed,” laughed Alex, blushing even more. 

As Alex walked away, John gave his ass a quick slap, enjoying the effect all of the attention was having on the man. Alex stopped immediately and looked back over his shoulder with an eyebrow raised. John simply grinned and winked, causing Alex to break out into giggles and continue on his way to the kitchen. When he disappeared around the corner, John finally stepped into the room to change. 

When he emerged, John was wearing a deep red blazer with matching dress pants and a white shirt. He was also holding on to a bottle of red wine and a small gift bag containing the framed photo of Alex, Martha and George. 

Alex’s breath hitched in his throat when John entered the kitchen. Sure, he knew from the various events he’d seen John at that the man scrubbed up well, but somehow this slightly toned down formal look was just even more attractive. He tapped Martha, who was grating some cheese onto the lasagne she had prepared, on the shoulder to bring her attention to the new presence in the room. 

“Oh! John, hello dear. It’s lovely to see you – it’s been a while.”

“Hello, Mrs Washington. The pleasure is all mine.”

“Oh, please. It’s Martha – that doesn’t change just because you two are dating now,” she smiled warmly and then noticed the bottle and bag that John was holding. “You shouldn’t have, dear, but thank you.”

“It’s the least I can do. The wine should be good – I don’t know much about it but it’s my father’s favourite and he has expensive taste – and this is just a little something. It’s silly, really, but I thought you might like it.” 

Alex took the wine and took it through to the dining room, placing it on the table. When he returned, Martha had opened the ‘little something’ and was marvelling at a picture that Alex couldn’t see. 

“Look what John’s given us, oh it’s lovely. You’ve picked a good one here, Alex.”

“I know.” Alex smiled up at John who was blushing profusely. He took the frame that Martha was holding out to him and studied the picture. It showed a candid shot of him and Martha laughing at something that George was saying. It captured perfectly the emotions of the three and Alex was struck once again by John’s talent. “He’s amazing.”

“Stop being adorable you two! Go ahead into the lounge, I’ll put the lasagne in the oven and then I want to hear all about this happened.” 

Alex rolled his eyes fondly at his adoptive mother as she busied herself with the cooking once more. He then took John’s hand and pulled him through to the living room and down onto the sofa. He didn’t let go of John’s hand once they sat down; he relished in the feeling of warmth and security that he felt spreading from his palm. 

“She loves you. I love you,” he said quietly. 

“You think so? And I love you too.”

“Definitely, how could she not? You’re so charming and damn you look good in that blazer. It’s an excellent colour on you.” As he spoke, Alex leaned closer and closer to John. When he finished, he brought his hand up too John’s cheek, brushed his thumb over the man’s cheekbones and closed the gap between them. The kiss was innocent but it still set off fireworks in Alex’s mind. 

John brought his hand to rest on the nape of Alex’s neck and they stayed like that, moving their lips slowly, softly, lovingly, until someone cleared their throat from the doorway. They jumped apart and Alex turned to see George standing there, his mouth set in a straight line but a twinkle in his eyes. 

“Evening, boys.”

“Evening George.”

“Evening, Mr President.”

“I think you can call me George when we’re in the residence, Mr Laurens. It’s good to see you again, John.”

“You too, sir – uh –George.”

George grinned at them both before leaving to find his wife. Alex turned to John and grinned. 

“He asked you to call him George! He must really like you.”

John just smiled back, happily. There had been no need for the anxiety; the Washingtons were the nicest people he knew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the fluff.   
> Next time: The actual dinner


	35. Chapter 35

George had managed to get away from the office for the day early, meaning that John had more time to sit with the entire Washington family, discussing all manner of things from politics to his life, with the odd segment of small-talk filling in the gaps. 

Dinner was served at just before seven. It was a surreal experience for John – to see the President of the United States and the First Lady of the United States just sitting around a dinner table like any other family. The food was sensational; John had never tasted a better lasagne and he made that clear to Martha as soon as he took the first mouthful. He was sat next to Alex and opposite Martha. 

Roughly half way through the meal, Alex’s hand found its way to John’s thigh, just a light pressure but enough to cause his cheeks to redden. He managed to ignore the hand most of the time but occasionally it would squeeze his thigh slightly. The first time it happened he choked slightly which of course put a huge smirk on Alex’s face. 

Once all four of them had finished their lasagne, Martha stood up to clear the plates and get dessert. John stood with her, insisting that he would help her to carry the plates into the kitchen. Out of the corner of his eye he could see George smiling approvingly and Alex smiling proudly. Neither smile was one that he was used to having directed at him and it made his heart swell. Martha assured him that she needed to help with the dessert so he returned to the table. 

Alex and George were talking about a potential trip to Camp David when John entered the dining room but it wrapped up pretty much as he sat down. Alex looked to him, flashed a grin then took his hand, bringing their hands to sit on his own knee together. John shuffled his chair closer as surreptitiously as he could in order to make the position more comfortable. If George noticed anything, he ignored it and turned to John to ask a question. 

“So, John. Will you be staying the night? We have spare rooms if you want one or you could stay with Alex. After all, it’ll be after nine by the time we finish desert, then there’ll be coffee and Washington isn’t the safest place to be navigating late at night.”

“I hadn’t actually thought about it, but I suppose it would be easier, if that’s okay?” He directed the question at both men; George seemed fine with the idea but he wanted to double check and he wasn’t sure what Alex would think. 

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want you heading out so late anyway, you can stay with me?” Alex looked at him hopefully as he spoke. 

John nodded his agreement and George clapped his hands together. 

“That settles it then! Remember what I said John, one of the family. Feel free to stay here whenever you want.”

“Thank you very much George, I appreciate it.”

Alex gave his hand a squeeze under the table and he realised that he had never felt more at home than he did sitting round the table with the Washingtons. 

As he came to that revelation, Martha walked in holding a set of desert plates and a platter with a cheesecake on it. 

“I should have asked, John, you’re not allergic to nuts are you?”

John shook his head. 

“Good. This isn’t very fancy and definitely isn’t any good for you but it’s delicious and simple to make. It’s a Nigella Lawson recipe – Nutella cheesecake,” she explained, placing the frankly gorgeous looking desert in the middle of the table. 

“It looks wonderful dear, thank you,” said George before giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. 

Alex and John both murmured words of agreement, both staring at the cheesecake with practical heart eyes. George picked up the serving knife and cut four pieces, handing them out as he went. 

From the first bite, John was in love.

Once the dinner, including coffee (decaf), was over, Alex and John helped Martha clear the table and wash the dishes before retiring to Alex’s room at around ten o’clock. 

“I’d say that was a success,” said Alex, sitting on the edge of the bed and looking up at John, who was pacing.

“Did I do okay? I thought it was okay but sometimes I come on a bit strong and I-”

“Hey, hey. You were amazing. Martha adores you and your damn charm and George has practically invited you to live with us, come, sit.” 

John stopped pacing and looked to Alex. One look at the smile on his boyfriend’s face and he relented, going to join him. He sat down and Alex leaned against him. John sank into the warmth. 

“I love you,” said Alex softly, “I don’t ever want to stop telling you that.”

“I love you too.”

Alex hummed happily. John yawned. 

“Oh hey there Mr Sleepy Head,” Alex chuckled, “you wanna get ready for bed? I’m tired too and I wasn’t working all day.”

“Yeah, can I borrow something to sleep in?”

“Oh, yeah of course.” Alex stood up and walked over to his wardrobe. 

When he opened the door, John caught sight of the photo he’d sent all those weeks ago, and smiled. Alex finished rummaging and threw a pair of sweatpants along with a large t-shirt over his head. John stood up and pulled his blazer off, setting it carefully on the bed for the moment. He got his shirt off before Alex turned round armed with sweatpants and a t-shirt of his own. John heard Alex gasp. 

“Jesus Christ, warn a guy.”

“What?” asked John, looking down at himself, confused. 

“You’re fucking gorgeous, John Laurens. Were you sculpted by the Gods or something? Holy shit.”

John blushed and looked at the floor. He wasn’t used to such compliments. Sure, he knew he was in good shape, but this was something else. Having Alexander Hamilton look at him like that made him feel like he could do anything. He pulled the t-shirt over his head, making Alex pout. John stepped across the room and kissed the man. 

When they were both fully changed – it took a while as the task got repeatedly put aside in favour of kissing each other for a few minutes – they climbed into Alex’s bed and Alex didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around his boyfriend. They mumbled one last ‘I love you’ each before going to sleep. 

John was experiencing domestic bliss and he was loving every second of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next couple chapter will probably skip through the next month fairly quickly, only showing important points because I know we all want to get to LA Pride. Also I know a lot of people wanted to see the Marliza date - I'm only really going ti glaze over it in conversations with either of them in this fic but once it's finished I might add a few little extra mini fics to the series.


	36. Chapter 36

The next morning was, in Alex’s opinion, perfect. He woke up cuddled in John’s arms and spent a few minutes just admiring the man. A strip of sunlight was shining on his nose, highlighting the freckles there. When he did wake up, he smiled softly at Alex, blinking slowly and Alex’s stomach flipped at how adorable it was. When the eventually made it into the kitchen, Alex made pancakes and they spent half an hour eating with one hand each; their left hands were joined on top of the table. John headed off to his desk at ten and Alex spent the rest of the day watching The West Wing.

The following few days were like a sort of honeymoon period. John would stop by the residence every lunch with some sort of take out – he alternated between healthy and unhealthy food – and they would spend the hour eating, talking and making out a lot. Alex had never experienced anything like the joy he felt when he was with John. It was pure, unadulterated bliss. 

A week after the dinner, Friday the 22nd June, and Alex was on his way to Angelica’s office. He and John had been dating for nearly two weeks and everything was still perfect. He was fairly certain that he would be coming out at LA Pride and that was going to take a hell of a lot of planning. They would need a secret service detail for one thing, but the biggest issue was how it would play to the public. That’s why he needed to speak to Angelica. 

“Alex! It’s good to see you, it’s been a while.”

Alex stepped into her office and closed the door. 

“Yeah, sorry. I’ve been writing a lot recently and I’ve been spending basically all of my free time with John.”

Angelica wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, laughing when Alex glared at her. 

“Sorry, sorry. Okay, so what can I do for you?”

“You told me to come to you when I was ready to come out…”

“Yes! Oh Alex I’m so happy for you I-”

“Calm down, it’s not happening right now, I’m still gonna wait another couple of weeks but the way in which I want to come out is going to require a fuck ton of planning.”

“Oh Alex, what are you doing to me?”

“It was George’s idea, so you can take up any grievances with him. I want to come out at LA Pride. It’s on the 8th.”

Angelica went wide-eyed and not in a good way. She looked ready to cry.

“That is going to take so much work. We’ll have to make sure people only see you together there at the right moment and make sure the right people are covering it and make sure that the first stories on it are positive and avoid disrupting the event with the press. Not to mention the security risks – there are people who won’t be happy to see you coming out.”

“I know, I know. But you don’t have to worry about the security and John and I have talked about the risks. I just need your help with the logistics. Come on Ang, you know you love me.”

Angelica threw her hands up in defeat. 

“Fine! Fine, God what was your next tactic? Puppy dog eyes?”

“You know me so well.”

Angelica called in her assistant and asked him to clear any meetings for the next hour. Then, she and Alex got down to business. By the end of the hour, they had a solid plan for the event. Alex was excited. 

On Wednesday the 27th, George and Martha were both at a dinner in New York, leaving Alex alone in the residence. He invited John over for dinner and then came to the sudden realisation on Tuesday the 26th that it had to be perfect because it would really be their first proper date. Sure, they had lunch together every day but that was casual and they hadn’t been out anywhere since getting together. He was originally planning on just ordering something in but the realisation sent him back to the drawing board. He texted Lafayette. 

11:27  
AdamSandler: Lafayette, I need your help. It’s an emergency. 

11:28  
MonsieurBaguette: What is it?! Are you okay???? 

11:29  
AdamSandler: I invited John for dinner tomorrow and it’s gonna be our first fate and I can’t cook. You can. 

11:30  
MonsieurBaguette: God, I thought something dreadful had happened. You need to revise the definition of emergency. 

11:31  
AdamSandler: Emergencies are subjective. But UNIMPORTANT – can you help me?

11:31  
MonsieurBaguette: You want me to cook? What do you want me to cook?

11:32  
AdamSandler: I don’t know! Steak? Risotto? Something! Just not too much garlic, no snails and no frog’s legs! You sort it out – I have to speak to Maria. 

The next few hours were filled with a hell of a lot of rushing around. He called Maria and she came to the residence laden with garment bags. She helped him to pick out a gorgeous, black three piece suit and then went to visit John at his desk with a suit for him. Lafayette said he’d arrive at the residence for five the next day. Everything was set.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is such a short chapter, and it's poorly written, and it's pretty boring - I'm just trying to get to the exciting stuff asap.


	37. Chapter 37

John arrived at the residence at half seven. When he walked inside, he knew that something wasn’t right. For one thing, he could hear Lafayette. Secondly, he could smell burning. 

“Alexander? Is everything okay?” he called. There was a muffled swear from the kitchen, a barely audible whispered argument, a crash, and then an Alex appearing in the hallway. 

“John! You’re here! Is everything okay? Haha, of course everything’s okay! What could possibly be not okay? I – this isn’t working, is it?”

John shook his head, a bemused smirk on his face. 

“Okay, fine. I wanted to cook because, you know, this is our first proper date but I can’t cook. So, I asked Lafayette to come and help me but apparently he can’t cook either.” 

“I can too cook! This was your fault!” came an offended voice, still in the kitchen.

“Shut up you bloody baguette!” Alex shot back. “Anyway,” he continued, turning back to John, “long story short, Lafayette burnt the food and everything’s gone to shit. I’m sorry.” 

Alex looked genuinely defeated and it broke John’s heart. 

“Hey, it doesn’t matter. I’m honestly so honoured by the fact that you even planned to do all of this. I’ll be happy with take out in front of the TV, as long as I get to spend time with you.” 

Alex wasted no time in surging forwards and wrapping his arms around John’s waist, hugging him tight. 

“You have no idea how happy that makes me,” he whispered into John’s shoulder. “Take out and TV sounds wonderful, I just wanted to do something nice.”

“Well for me anything I do with you is better than nice. It’s exceptional because you are exceptional and I love you.”

“I love you too.” 

“Aww, you guys are adorable. I love your love.”

John looked up and over Alex’s head to see Lafayette’s head poking out into the hallway. Alex laughed into John’s shoulder before stepping back and turning to face the Frenchman. 

“Thank you for the help, Laf. I’m sorry your efforts have gone to waste.”

“It is okay, mon ami. I’m sorry it went wrong. I’m also sorry for leaving you with all of the washing up, bye!” With that he sped towards and past them, narrowly dodging Alex’s attempt to hit him, and straight out of the residence. 

Alex glared at the door as it closed, as if it should have done something to stop his friend, but soon stopped when John’s hand took hold of his and pulled him back to face him. 

“Come on,” began the older man, “let’s go order some Chinese, yeah? We can watch The West Wing?” 

It took nothing more to convince Alex that the night hadn’t been ruined. Sure, it hadn’t gone exactly to plan, but this was far more their thing anyway and he felt the same way as John – as long as he got to spend time with his boyfriend, he didn’t care what they did. Not to mention, John looked ridiculously gorgeous in his suit. 

When Martha and George got back that night, or rather the early hours of the morning, they found Alex and John asleep, cuddling on the sofa, with take our cartons on the floor and The West Wing playing on the TV. It wasn’t cold enough for them to need a blanket but, as a gesture, George grabbed the first thing he could find – the gay pride flag – and draped it over the two. 

The next morning, John had to rush off to an event with Martha. He apologised profusely to Alex for leaving him with all of the tidying and Alex couldn’t help but marvel at how domestic everything was. It made him extremely happy. 

Alex didn’t have to go out until midday, when he was meeting Eliza for lunch. He was slightly anxious as it would be the first time he had seen her since they ‘broke up’ but they both agreed that they needed to make it clear to the press that they broke up amiably and were prepared to remain friends as soon as possible, or else suffer the repercussions in a few months when they were suddenly buddy-buddy again. It was all very complicated, but Alex wouldn’t change a thing; the series of events that had led them to this point were the only ones that could guarantee his relationship with John, and that’s all he cared about. 

The lunch was great. Alex hadn’t realised how awful he was still feeling about Eliza until he felt a surge of relief when she mentioned her date with Maria. It was good, knowing that she was happy. 

“She is amazing, Alex. I’m so lucky to have met her.”

“I’m glad. You deserve it, ‘Liza. You are a truly remarkable woman and you deserve to be happy.”

“Thank you, Alex. Now, what about you? How’s things with John?”

“Amazing. I adore him and he’s utterly amazing. He just has this sunny disposition and it makes me so happy. I think I’m going to come out soon.”

“Oh, Alex! That’s amazing. I’m so proud of you. When you are out, we’ll have to double date. Just imagine the faces of homophobes as they try to comprehend that situation.”

So yeah, everything was fine between him and Eliza and he was genuinely relieved. He’d missed her. 

And, the notion that he and John could actually go on dates in public hadn’t really dawned on him until Eliza brought it up and it made him inexplicably happy. They would be able to hold hands, kiss, hug etc. etc. without having to hide inside the residence. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and smiled as he pulled up John’s contact. 

15:34  
AdamSandler: I love you. 

15:36  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: You okay?

15:36  
AdamSandler: Yeah, I just wanted to say it. 

15:37  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Oh, well, I love you too. More than anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone feels like making a fan art of John and Alex asleep on the sofa, cuddled under a rainbow flag, please do. If I had the art skills I would because it's a bloody adorable image.


	38. Chapter 38

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What time is it? Showtime!

On Wednesday the 4th of June, Alex made the decision. John was everything he wanted and more and he wanted to show him off to the world; he was going to come out at LA Pride. 

On Thursday the 5th of June, John pressed his lips against Alex’s with tears in his eyes as his boyfriend told him his decision. Alex was everything he wanted and more and he wanted him to be allowed to be all of himself. 

On Friday the 6th of June, Alex came out to a select group of the secret service and they worked throughout the day to sort out the security side of the event. John spent the day in and out of Angelica’s office, sorting out the publicity side whenever she was free. 

On Saturday the 7th of June, both men packed and joined Martha and George in the residence for a good luck dinner. They ordered pizza because it had been a long day for Martha and she didn’t have time to cook, but she had made a cake the day before. George seemed to be the most excited out of anyone. 

On the 8th of June, Alex and John arrived in West Hollywood, Los Angeles at 10 am. They had a hotel room booked near the parade route so they could hide out there until the right moment. The parade was due to start at midday. 

“I can’t believe that this is actually happening,” whispered Alex at some point in the midst of constant security checks. 

“I’m so proud of you. And I feel so privileged that I get to be a part of all of this, a part of your life,” whispered John in reply, not entirely sure why the whispering was necessary but not wanting to disturb the small window of peace they had. 

Alex slipped his hand into John’s. 

“I’m scared.”

“I know, but you’ll be alright and if you’re not, even for a second, I’m right here.” 

At a quarter past twelve, Alex and John left the hotel room. John was wearing his favourite tank top with a turtle on it and had a gay pride flag wrapped around his shoulders. His hair was tied up and he had novelty rainbow sunglasses over his eyes. Alex also had a tank top on. His had a simple black equals sign on it but was hidden under a dark green hoodie. The hood of said hoodie was up and he had sunglasses on. Essentially, it was impossible to recognise the son of the President of the United States. As they were walking towards the actual parade, Alex slipped his hand into John’s. John couldn’t see the man’s eyes but he could tell that they were scared. He gave a reassuring smile and squeezed his hand. 

“You’ll be fine, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They reached the pride parade and John couldn’t stop smiling. He’d always wanted to attend a huge pride event and he was living the dream. LA Pride was a true spectacle. There were people everywhere. 

At 12:20, the members of the security detail each rang up a different newspaper or TV news station and told them that they had seen a celebrity not yet out at the parade with their significant other. They then gave the exact spot on the parade route. They hung up before they could be asked any questions. 

At 12:25, Alex and John pushed to the barrier, taking the places of two other secret service agents who had been waiting undercover since ten. Alex removed his sunglasses and watched nervously as people on the other side of the road began to stare at him. His stomach flipped as he saw someone take out their phone. 

At 12:30, as expected, a few of the news outlets that they had called earlier were in the vicinity. One of the eagle-eyes reporters finally set their eyes on Alex and John swore he saw them mouth ‘holy shit’. 

“You ready?” asked John. 

Alex nodded. He took a deep breath and removed his hoodie, revealing the equality tank top. John wrapped the pride flag around both of them as the reporter started to yell at his team to get their cameras out. Soon the other reporters they’d spotted caught on. Once they were sure that they had caught the attention of all reporters in the area, and much of the crowd, Alex and John turned to each other. 

“Let’s confirm what they’re all thinking, yeah? Give them a show?” challenged John, eyebrow raised. 

Alex suddenly felt a sense of freedom as the Sun beat down on them and he stood wrapped in a rainbow flag with his boyfriend at LA Pride. He laughed and leant forward, pressing their lips together. He smiled into the kiss as he heard hoots and whistles from around them. There were gasps and questions, not necessarily directed at them, from all around. 

“Is that Alex Hamilton?”

“Is that The President’s son?”

“Oh my God! Look, it’s Alexander Hamilton! You know, George Washington’s adopted son!”

Eventually the float that they had been waiting for arrived. Angelica had sorted it all out with the head of the organisation. A few members of the secret service were walking alongside the float. It belonged to an LGBT+ organisation fighting for the rights of LGBT+ people of colour. Someone opened the barrier and allowed Alex and John through before shutting it quickly again. John looked over to Alex, worried, but his concerns were completely unfounded. Alex was laughing with delight, spinning round and raking it all in. 

“I’m so happy. Thank you for making me happy, John,” he yelled when he finally faced his boyfriend. 

“I’m happy that you’re happy!” he yelled back, slightly taken back by the emotions he was feeling. His heart was thumping with the music of the parade, swelling with the cheering of the crowd, and dancing in all of the colours of the rainbow. 

They took their place, walking in front of the float, behind the banner for the organisation, holding hands and grinning. They soon broke away from the float, just rushing from side to side, laughing, taking pictures with people and giving their security detail a heart attack. 

The reporters followed from the other side of the barriers, trying to take pictures and film. The kept up until finally they reached a gap at the barrier and rushed forwards to fill it. Alex checked his watch. It was one o’clock. Everything was going as planned. He dragged John over to the reporters and just stood laughing for a few seconds as they all started yelling questions. Then, he held his hand up and they stopped. 

“I’m not going to take questions, I’m giving a statement. You all get the same one. I am very gay. This is my boyfriend, John Laurens. That’s all, have a good day!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of Pride, i.e the aftermath and Lams enjoying the gay, will be in the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed this!


	39. Chapter 39

Alex was having the time of his life. He was walking through the crowded streets of LA, hand in hand with his boyfriend. It was surreal. He and John had walked with the parade for about half an hour before peeling away and heading into the crowd, the other side of the barrier. There were a few cheers from people who saw them and some confused looks from those who had obviously not heard the news. 

They stood at the barrier and watched the parade go by for another hour or so before walking around some more. 

“This is amazing,” breathed John as they headed down the parade route. 

Alex squeezed John’s hand and grinned wildly at him. Each parade float was playing a different song and Alex could see the excitement appear in John’s eyes as Lady Gaga’s Born This Way began blaring from a passing set of speakers. He was practically vibrating with the need to sing and dance but took a look around at all of the eyes on them and tried to ignore it. Alex could tell that there was no way that John was going to do anything that would attract more attention, but whether it was for his own sake or Alex’s. Alex couldn’t tell. So, he decided to take the leap first, to assure John that either he wouldn’t be as embarrassing as Alex, or that it was okay to draw attention. 

“My mama told me when I was young, we are all born superstars!” he sang, only slightly off-key. 

John raised his eyebrows in surprise but joined in happily on the next line nonetheless. 

“She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on, in the glass of her boudoir.”

Alex stopped singing. John was amazing. 

“There’s nothing wrong with loving who you are, cause he made you perfect babe.” John sang directly to Alex, meaning every word. “So hold your head up, girl, and you’ll go far-” He cut off when he noticed Alex blushing at the word ‘girl’. Oh, he was going to have to use that. The float pulled away and the music faded into something else. Neither paid much mind to what song as they were too busy staring at each other. 

“I love you,” mouthed John. 

Alex smiled and returned the expression. Neither could tell who closed the gap, who made the move, but they were soon kissing. To anyone looking in their direction, they would look like any other couple, celebrating their right to be as they are, with no one seeking to alter them. John’s tongue traced Alex’s bottom lip. When Alex didn’t respond in the desired manner, John bit the lip softly, eliciting a moan from Alex. 

“As much as I am enjoying this,” said Alex, breathing heavily as he pulled away, “I’m thinking it’s probably not the most appropriate in public.”

“Whatever you say, baby girl.” 

Alex shivered slightly at the term of endearment. 

“I was hoping you hadn’t noticed…” he said. 

“Why not, baby girl? It’s nothing to be ashamed of. It’s… hot.” 

Alex blushed. A lot. 

“You think so?”

“Definitely.”

At three o’clock, Alex and John made their way to the hotel room to pick up their things and get in the car back to the airport. This time they flew on air force one. The security detail stayed in the area designated to the press, meaning Alex and John had the rest of the plane to themselves. And, if John tested Alex’s love for his new nickname… nobody needed to know. 

When they arrived back at the White House, they headed straight to the oval office. As they walked through the West Wing, hand in hand, some people called out congratulations and others just smiled at them. Angelica ran out of her office and wrapped them both in a hug when she spotted them. 

“I’m so proud of you, Alex. And I’m so happy that it all went to plan,” she gushed. 

“Well, we have you to thank for that mostly. You made all of this happen, and I’m so grateful,” replied Alex. 

“Oh, hush. I simply made some phone calls. You’re the one who did it. You were brave enough to reveal yourself to the world, and I’m so proud of you. And John, thank you. I have known Alex for years, and I’ve never seen him as happy as he is with you. Now go, go see the President before we all start crying.” 

Both men smiled at her gratefully before moving on. 

“Well, I must say, I wasn’t expecting that,” said Kitty the second they were in her view. “But good job, Alex. John, if you ever hurt him, I will end you. Got it?” she asked, sternly.

John nodded solemnly. 

“Good! You can go in.” Her usual smile returned and she waved them in to the oval happily. 

“Ah! Son, John, good to see you both. How was that?”

“Amazing,” they said together, John adding a ‘sir’. 

“I’m glad. I’m proud of you, son. And John, thank you for making him happy.”

“It’s my pleasure, sir. I think everyone seems to be overlooking the fact that he makes me just as happy, if not more.”

“Quite right, too. Well, I’m sorry to cut this short but I have a meeting with Senator Vinnick now, I just wanted to see you two quickly.”

“No worries, George. We’ll see you later?” asked Alex. 

George nodded and waved them out. He was so proud of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a slut for John calling Alex 'baby girl', I'm sorry.


	40. Chapter 40

“The residence?” asked Alex tiredly as they walked back through the West Wing. “I need coffee but nowhere will be open at this hour. I’m pretty sure the only reason most people are still here is to see us. Senator Vinnick had to fly in from California today, late. That’s the only reason George is still there.”

“The residence sounds good to me,” replied John, equally as mellowed as his boyfriend from the day’s events. “And how about instead of coffee, we order in some pizza and then go to bed. It’s fairly late and we were up early.”

“Yeah, that sounds better. Old habits die hard I guess. Although, we do eat way too much pizza.”

“True. Especially as I can cook. Oh well, I can’t be bothered tonight.”

“You can cook?”

“Yes. My mother taught me. Before she died, the whole family would cook together, even my father. Thanksgiving was always the best. We’d be up at the crack of dawn to start preparing the dinner. I haven’t cooked in a while though… not since she died really. It’d be nice to get back to it.” 

“Your mother sounds amazing,” said Alex softly. 

“Yeah, she was. She was beautiful, inside and out.”

“I’m sure. I’d have loved to have met her.”

“I think she’d have liked you. I always got the sense that she was far more liberal than my father, although she never spoke against him. I think she’d have accepted me for who I am.”

“From what you’ve told me, I think she would have too.”

“I’m so glad I met you Alexander. I’ve never really know where I was going in life, I never thought I’d be good enough, not after she died. But when I met you, I felt like maybe wherever I was meant to be… I don’t know… like, it’s always been with you? I know that sounds stupid, but I was just so lost and then you walked across that room to me and I swear my heart stopped, for a second. It was those damn eyes, Alexander. They still get me.”

Alex watched John as he spoke and felt tears begin to form in his eyes. 

“Wow, I must be really exhausted,” said John, sniffing slightly. “I’m sorry, that was all really heavy after such a happy day.”

“It’s okay. It’s more than okay because it was the same for me, you know? One look at you, John Laurens, and I was helpless, fucking weak at the knees. You make me happy, whether you’re cheering in the streets with a pride flag around your shoulders or you’re just walking and telling me about yourself, no matter how heavy the topic.”

“Okay, you’re tired too, come on. Pizza and sleep.” John brushed off Alex’s words, but Alex could see that he had felt every one. 

“Pizza and sleep,” he repeated, “With maybe a little bit of making out somewhere in there?”

“Well of course, baby girl, sounds perfect to me.” 

When they reached the residence they immediately went to get changed. John had one shelf in Alex’s wardrobe for his own clothes, mainly sweatshirts and sweatpants. Alex grabbed two of John’s sweatshirts, replaced his top with one of them, and threw the other to John. 

“You literally have an entire wardrobe full of clothes. I have one shelf, and yet you still wear mine. What gives?” Asked John, incredulous. 

“Your clothes are a lot cosier than mine and they smell nice. And your sweaters are big so I can do sweater paws. It’s great.”

“Okay then. You do look adorable in them I suppose.”

Alex flushed and John laughed. 

“Right, throw me some pants?”

Alex grabbed a pair of sweatpants from the shelf and threw them over his shoulder. John pulled them on and then walked forwards and wrapped his arms around Alex’s waist from behind. Alex hummed contentedly and closed his eyes, leaning back into the touch.

“This has been an exceptional day,” he whispered, moving his hands to overlap John’s. 

“It has. From here on out this is what it is every day. Now you can kiss me on the White House steps and it would be alright.”

“I am going to kiss you in front of every major landmark we come across, because I can.”

“I’m up for that.”

“Good. Now, I’m enjoying the cuddling and all but I really want some pizza now.”

“Okay, okay,” chuckled John, removing his arms. “Come on then, baby girl, let’s get the cheesiest pizza we can. Dibs on not being the one to tell Joe he has to go to the gate and get it.”

“Ugh, I don’t even care. Okay, you phone up, I’ll go tell Joe.”

Alex shuffled out of his room and walked just outside of the residence barefoot. 

“Evening, sir,” greeted Joe for the second time that night. “What can I do for you?”

“I’m really sorry but John and I are ordering pizza, could you go and get it when it arrives?”

“Of course, sir. You and Mr Laurens make a lovely couple, if you don’t mind me saying so.”

“Thank you, Joe. For everything.” 

Joe smiled, nodded, and turned back so that he was facing the corridor once more. Alex slipped back inside the residence and into the kitchen where John was putting the phone down. 

“One margarita pizza with extra cheese coming right up.”

“Brilliant.”


	41. Chapter 41

“Alex! John! Over here!” called Eliza from the other side of the room. 

“I’ll get our drinks, you head over.” John kissed Alex’s cheek and gently pushed him in the direction of Eliza and Maria’s table. 

As soon as Alex reached the table, Eliza was up and hugging him. Maria laughed at her girlfriend’s behaviour but also stood up and greeted Alex with a hug, albeit far calmer than Eliza. 

“I’m so happy for you and John! And I’m so proud!” exclaimed Eliza, arms flailing slightly. 

“God, how much coffee has she had?” he asked Maria. 

“Too much.”

“Oh, hush! I’m fine, I’m just happy for them! Aren’t you happy for them?”

“Of course I am, but I don’t think the whole of Starbucks needs to know,” she chuckled, taking Eliza’s hand and pulling her to sit down. 

“What does the whole of Starbucks not need to know?” Asked John as he arrived. He passed one of the drinks he was holding to Alex and placed his own on the table. As soon as his hands were free, Eliza was up again. 

“How happy I am for you two! Oh it’s so good to see you John! It’s been far too long.” She wrapped him in a hug as well. 

“Woah! Hello Eliza, it’s good to see you too.”

“I’m sorry about her John, too much caffeine!” explained Maria, but she was smiling too.

“It’s fine. It’s good to see you too Maria, by the way.”

“And you, John. I would hug you but I just sat down again and it really hasn’t been that long since I last saw you.”

John assured her it was fine and Eliza finally let go. He took his seat next to Alex and placed his hand on his boyfriend’s knee, relishing in the fact that he could do so in public. Eliza looked pointedly at his hand placement and then wiggled her eyebrows at John, far to excitedly. He just rolled his eyes in response. 

“That was really something at the parade, you two,” commented Maria once John and Alex had each downed roughly half of their drinks in the space of a few seconds. 

“It was, wasn’t it?” replied Alex, looking over at John with a sparkle in his eye.

“It was definitely something,” affirmed John before pressing a quick kiss to Alex’s lips. 

“You guys are so cute!” squealed Eliza. 

“Never mind us, everyone – and I mean everyone – knows about us, what’s going n with you two?” asked Alex, suddenly matching Eliza’s excitement. 

“Well, I asked her on a date a couple of weeks ago and thank God she said yes,” started Maria, smiling at Eliza as she spoke. “And we get like half way through the date, and I’m thinking ‘holy crap she’s amazing’ and so I just kind of blurted out ‘be my girlfriend?’, I thought I was going to die of embarrassment and the crippling pain of rejection, but she just blushed, smiled, and accepted.” 

“That’s amazing! Honestly, good job on the whole just getting your shit together asap thing. Would have been nice if we could have done that, eh?” asked John, now addressing Alex, with a completely mirthful tone. 

“Definitely. I kind of wish I’d just kissed you the moment I saw you.”

“He cried!” interjected Eliza, “He cried because you were so pretty, just fyi.” 

“Seriously, Eliza?” gasped Alex, mock-hurt. 

Eliza giggled in reponse. 

“Is that true?” laughed John. 

“Yup. I was talking to Laf, caught sight of you and then just started crying,” admitted Alex, going very red. 

“Aw! Babe, you had a crush on me! That’s embarrassing.”

“We’re dating. And stop referencing Parks and Rec.”

“Still.” 

“As if you weren’t pining just as much, John Laurens,” said Eliza sternly. 

“Don’t remind me!” 

They sat in Starbucks chatting for a few hours, intermittently getting new drinks (Eliza was cut off from coffee, Maria made sure she only got iced teas, and even that was too much extra caffeine). Eliza consistently gushed about how adorable Alex and John were every time they were remotely affectionate and Maria consistently apologised for the slightly erratic nature of her girlfriend. 

At four o’clock, John and Alex walked back to the White House because John had to photograph George meeting with the new British ambassador, Lord John Marbury. Alex tagged along because a) he had nothing better to do, and b) he had heard many a story about the highly eccentric Earl of Croy, Marquess of Needham and Dolby, Baronet of Brycey and now Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States for the United Kingdom, and he was looking forward to meeting him. He was definitely glad he’d made the decision because it meant he got to see Leo’s face when Lord Marbury mistook him for a butler called Gerald. And, as it turned out, Lord Marbury was actually rather interesting to talk to if you could get past the pomp and ceremony. He had happily spoke with both John and Alex whilst they waited for the President’s arrival, commenting on how impressed he was by Alex’s coming out. John stepped back from the conversation when it turned to politics, specifically UK politics, a subject about which he had no understanding. 

George had been put in a surprisingly good mood by Lord Marbury and in an unexpected move, asked all of the senior staff, Hercules, John, Kitty and the Lord back to the residence for chilli. 

“George’s chilli is exceptional, like seriously,” exclaimed Alex excitedly to John on their way to the residence. 

“This is going to be a great night,” replied John. He was disappointed by how few of the senior staff he knew and was excited to speak to them properly. 

“He hasn’t invited everyone over like this in ages. It’s always a great night because it’s spontaneous meaning he has to be in a good mood. It’ll probably be a late one too, and we’ll probably all regret it in the morning.”

“That sounds like my kind of night.”

John wouldn’t go as far as to say he regretted it the next morning, but he certainly felt some adverse effects of the alcohol consumed. As it turned out, Hercules and Angelica could drink them all under the table, Lord John Marbury was a brilliantly eloquent drunk, and the deputy chief of staff was a major lightweight. It was definitely a great night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did not expect this chapter to go that way, at all. I hadn't even planned to have an event at the White House. I guess that's what happens when you just make it up as you go along... I really need to start planning my writing.


	42. Chapter 42

A week or so after meeting Lord John Marbury, John and Alex joined the President, the First Lady and the senior staff on a trip to Austin, Texas. They spent much of the day exploring the city whilst the administration were in meetings but rejoined the group for a dinner that evening. Alex once again marvelled about how good John looked in a suit and at some point they had to escape to another room to make out for a bit.

At seven o’clock they headed out towards the motorcade. They walked out holding hands just a few paces behind George and Martha, stopping whenever George stopped to speak to the crowd gathered.

Alex felt a chill run down his spine but he wasn’t cold. For some reason he suddenly needed to get back to the car as quickly as possible. His grip on John’s hand tightened and he pulled him along a little quicker.

“Hey, hey, are you okay?” asked John as they passed the Washingtons.

“Yeah, just a little cold is all.”

“Okay.”

They were about twenty metres away from the car when the yelling started. Alex whipped around to see what was going on. People were running, the Washingtons had been pushed to the ground by Hercules, Angelica was ducked down by the barriers.

Then he saw the gun.

A few metres away, on their left, stood a lone gunman holding a shotgun. It was pointed at Alex and Alex couldn’t move. He just about registered a member of the security detail rushing towards them as the gun was fired.

Everything went quiet, like he was underwater. He saw the bullet, felt movement next to him and then he was on the floor. But the only pain was his shoulder hitting the ground. He looked up in confusion, surprised that the bullet had missed. It seemed to be coming straight towards him.

He looked up at John and _oh_. It didn’t miss. John was clutching his stomach, stumbling slightly. He was far paler than Alex had ever seen him. He fell backwards. Now Alex felt pain. The pain was so unbearable as he watched his boyfriend groaning on the floor with blood blooming across his front and soaking his white shirt. He continued to stare at the spot where John was lying, even when John was moved, carried away. Alex just kept staring. He was vaguely aware of someone pulling him to his feet and yelling in his ear but it was all just hazy.

Someone piled him into a car but he pushed back out only so he could throw up on the floor. Then he allowed them to manoeuvre him back in. His mind was still mostly hazy but there was one clear thought ringing through his head on repeat. _John was shot. John was shot. John was shot_. And then _John could be dead_. He barely managed to open the car door before he threw up again.

He was pushed back in by Hercules. _Where’s George?_ Alex tried to ask, realising he didn’t see them after the bullet was fired, but no words came out. He slumped back in his seat in defeat and let the tears just pour.

At some point between all of the crying Alex must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew he was opening his eyes to a hospital. The car was just pulling up behind the rest of the motorcade. George and Martha were getting out of the car ahead. Alex started to cry again once he saw them and pushed out of the car. They turned around and he ran towards them, George meeting him in the middle and wrapping him in a strong hug.

“Son! I’m so sorry. I’m glad you’re okay but I’m so sorry-”

“Is he dead?” sobbed Alex.

“I don’t know, I don’t know anything, I’m sorry.”

Alex continued to sob into the President’s shoulder and George’s grip tightened around him. A few moments later Martha appeared at their side.

“He’s alive. He’s critical and has been rushed into surgery, but he’s alive.”

Alex pulled away from George and threw his arms around her. George wrapped his arms around both of them.

“Alex! Alex!”

The three of them split apart and turned to see Angelica running towards them, tears streaming down her cheeks. Alex broke into a run and pulled her into a hug.

“You’re okay. Oh my God I’m so glad you’re okay. He was aiming at you and then I got down but I hit my head and I didn’t know what happened, next thing I know someone’s been shot and I’m on my way to the hospital. I was so worried but you’re okay, and the President and First Lady are okay and –” she stopped short as she put together the pieces – the missing person and the sobs that were still racking Alex’s body. “Where’s John? Oh God, Alex please tell me it wasn’t him.”

“It was.”

“Oh my God. I’m so sorry Alex, is he… is he-”

“He’s alive. Barely.”

“I can’t believe it. It all happened so fast. Shit, I’m sorry but I have to call some people. This is probably all over the news already. I’ll need to make a statement before people start to panic. I’m sorry.”

She pulled away from the hug and ran back to the car, leaving Alex crying in his place. The sobbing stopped and he felt as though he had nothing left to give. He was exhausted, he felt sick, his heart _hurt_ and he fell to the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had to get rid of the 'minimal angst' in the tags. I'm sorry I didn't plan for this to happen.


	43. Chapter 43

6 hours. That’s how long Alex sat in the hospital waiting room with no news. 6 hours. He had never felt more trapped. They were surrounded by more members of the secret service than he had ever seen gathered together. They were stationed at every door to the room, each end of every attached hallway and at the entrance to the hospital. They wouldn’t let Alex leave. 

“Son, you seem to be forgetting that you were the one he was aiming for,” George had said, sounding broken. 

Alex hadn’t even thought about that. He hadn’t registered the fact that someone had tried to kill him. All that he could think about was John lying on the pavement, groaning and bleeding with a gunshot wound in his stomach. That’s all that mattered to him. 

The waiting room was wholly chrome and white; it was clinical. The seats were plastic and unforgiving and the AC unit was making an awful noise. Alex couldn’t hear himself think. 

Lafayette arrived after 4 hours. He rushed in to the room and Alex stood to greet him, allowing the tall man to wrap his arms around him. 

“I am so sorry, mon ami. This is awful.”

“Yeah. It is.”

And that was it. Alex was done with the crying and the comfort. He was in so much pain but he couldn’t express any of it. He was too exhausted. Lafayette sensed this and let go. He watched sadly as Alex just sank back into his seat. Alex couldn’t look him in the eye; he didn’t want to see the pity that he knew was written all over his friend’s face. He didn’t deserve anyone’s pity; John got shot saving him. Lafayette turned away and walked over to George and Martha. They stood too but this time they wrapped him in a hug. They sat together and had a quiet conversation, about what? Alex didn’t know. He didn’t care either. How could he care? His John Laurens was in an operating theatre, fighting for his life. And that was the best case scenario. His John Laurens could be dead. There could be someone on their way to tell him that. He could imagine the pity on their face, in their voice. There would be so much pity. 

An hour after Lafayette arrived, he spoke directly to Alex again. 

“Has anyone called his family?”

“Fuck,” Alex swore. He hadn’t thought about that. How hadn’t he thought about that? He fished out his phone and called Angelica. 

“Alex, hi! Any news?”

“Not yet. Has someone called Henry Laurens?”

“Shit, no. We’ve all been focusing on assuring people you and the President are safe. I can’t believe it. It’s all over the news. They may not know, though. It’s the early hours of the morning. I’ll get someone to-”

“I’ll do it. I have to do it, it was my fault, I-”

“Alex!” This came from both Angelica over the phone, and everyone in the room. He ignored Lafayette, George and Martha. “This isn’t your fault,” continued Angelica, “But I can get you the number if you really want to.”

“I have to. He was never accepting of John and I refuse to have him think I’m a coward for not calling him myself.”

“Okay, Alex. I’m sending it now. Call me as soon as there is news.”

“Of course, thank you.”

The line went dead. He sighed and waited the few seconds for his phone to buzz with a text notification. As soon as the number was in front of him, he called Henry Laurens Snr, before he could change his mind. 

The dial tone rang for around thirty seconds. Just as he was worried it would go to voicemail, someone picked up.

“Hello?” The voice was female. 

“Martha? Martha Laurens?”

“Yes? Who is this?”

“I’m sorry to call at this hour. My name is Alexander Hamilton and-”

She gasped. He had almost hoped she somehow didn’t know who he was. 

“You’re dating my brother,” she stated. “What’s happened? I’m assuming something has happened. You wouldn’t be calling otherwise.”

“Martha, I’m so sorry…”

“What? Alexander, what is it?” her voice was urgent and scared. 

“There was a dinner – in Austin – and as we were leaving there was… there was a man and he had a gun. He was aiming for me, Martha, I’m so sorry, it’s my fault.”

“What is your fault, Alex? What’s happened? Is he alive?”

“John pushed me to the floor, he took the bullet. It hit him in the stomach. He’s alive but he was rushed to surgery in a critical condition. It’s been five hours, I’m so sorry we didn’t call sooner.”

“Shit.” She was crying. 

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“It is-”

“No. It’s not. I know John and I saw the way he was looking at you at that pride parade. He wouldn’t want you to blame yourself. You need to hold it together, for him. When he wakes up, and he will wake up, he will need to know that you are okay.”

“Okay, okay. You’re right. Do you want me to tell your father? I was trying to get hold of him.”

“No, no. I’ll tell him. He will not take it well from you. He will blame you.”

“Ah, he didn’t appreciate the announcement.”

“That is the understatement of the century. So, yeah, I’ll tell him. I’m going to try and get a flight up there, do you have a piece of paper? I’ll give you my cell.”

“Hang on.” He muted the call and addressed Lafayette. “Open notes on your phone, take down this number.” He put the phone on speaker. “Go ahead, Martha.”

She dictated the number and Lafayette took it down. 

“Okay, so you’ve got my number, I’m going to go and tell my dad. Keep me updated, we’ll be there asap. Thank you, Alex.”

“For what?”

“For making him happy.”


	44. Chapter 44

Once he ended the call with Martha, Alex didn’t return to his seat. Instead, he spent the next hour pacing up and down. None of the other occupants of the room dared to tell him to stop, regardless of how on edge it was making them.

He only stopped when the door opened. The other three stood up and they all stared at the newcomer expectantly. 

“Is he dead?” Alex was impatient. 

The nurse looked at him in surprise, obviously shocked by his bluntness. She shook her head and George, Martha and Lafayette sat back down, sighing in relief. Alex showed no similar sign of reprieve. 

“Is the surgery over?”

“Yes. He’s stable, for the moment. He’s not out of the woods yet, I’m afraid, and he has yet to wake up. You can see him but you must make no attempt to wake him up. If he makes it through the night, he should be okay, but we have to do everything we can to ensure no impediment to his recovery. Do you understand?”

“If?”

“Yes, Mr Hamilton. If. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Follow me.” 

Alex followed her out of the room, sparing no glance back to George, Martha or Lafayette. There were now two thoughts fighting in his mind. He’s stable, and if he makes it through the night. 

They arrived at a small, private room with a security detail stationed at the door. 

“Mr Hamilton?” began the nurse just before she opened the door. “I can give you half an hour, and then I’m very sorry but you are going to have to go back to the waiting room.”

“Okay,” he whispered, not taking his eyes off of the door. He had to know that John was alive. He had to see him for himself. 

The nurse pushed the door open, turned and walked back down the corridor. 

The second he saw John, Alex began to cry again. He closed the door behind him and slowly moved to take the seat next to the bed. There was a faint, steady beeping coming from the machine John was hooked up to. He looked so pale. It was such an awful difference from the colourful, joyous, passionate John Laurens he had come to know and love. As he stared at the older man’s face, noticing that the freckles now stood out against the greyish skin, a fresh wave of guilt came over him. He couldn’t accept that this wasn’t his fault. If he hadn’t have dragged them ahead of George and Martha, the security detail would have been able to get them down in time. John nearly died because he knew Alex. Why did everyone leave? Alex’s father left, his mother died, his cousin killed himself, his brother was goodness knows where and now his boyfriend was lying on a hospital bed, a mere shade of the person he was. 

Alex’s cheeks were wet with tears but his throat was dry. He swallowed and began to speak.

“Hey Laurens,” he started, his voice barely a whisper, “It’s Alexander. I don’t know if you can hear me right now, but I just want to tell you that I love you. I never, ever, want to stop telling you that. I’m so sorry that this has happened, I feel like it’s my fault but your sister told me it wasn’t, and I’m inclined to side with her. She was happy for us, J. She’s on her way here with your father, I think. George and Martha are in the waiting room. We’ve been waiting for six hours and I haven’t really spoken to them but I can tell that they are scared shitless right now. They love you, you know? Both of them. Laf’s here too; he flew in.” His voice had risen to normal volume. “John, my John Laurens. I need you to be okay. I need you to be okay because I need you. You are honestly my everything, and I know that we haven’t been dating all that long but I’ve never met anyone like you before, and it’s ridiculous and inexplicable but it’s wonderful. They’ve said… they’ve said that if you make it through the night, you’ll be okay. You hear that? Just make it through the night, do that for me. Please J. I can’t stay for much longer; I have to go back to the waiting room in a bit. But, in the morning, I’m going to come back and you’re going to be okay. You have to be okay. I’m – I’m going to go now. I can’t stay right now, it hurts too much and I know how awful that sounds to someone who just got shot but… I just adore you, John Laurens. I think I always will.” He stood up and breathed out deeply and slowly. He didn’t realise that he was doing it, but he was taking in the image of John Laurens, alive, engraving it in his memory… just in case.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was quite short, sorry. I would also like to say I'm sorry for the distress all of this angst is causing people, particularly Victoria, whose work parking lot has experienced a lot of emotions over the last couple of days.


	45. Chapter 45

George, Martha and Lafayette were asleep by the time Alex got back to the waiting room. It was gone midnight and it had been a long day. Alex could feel exhaustion begin to cloud his mind, but he was used to it. He couldn’t sleep, not now. He sat in silence until around one at which point he was getting restless. He stood up and walked out of the room, careful not to wake anyone. There were around a dozen members of the secret service surrounding the room, some standing by the door and others sitting on the chairs lining the corridor. Hercules was there too, leaning against the wall directly opposite the door. Alex joined him. 

“You alright?”

“No.”

“Fair.”

“Is there anywhere I can get a coffee right now? The others are all asleep but I’m too scared.”

“Yeah, sure, but you can’t get it yourself, sorry. I’ll go.”

“Thanks Mulligan.”

“No problem, Ham.”

At three am, long since the rather mediocre coffee, Alex got a phone call from Martha. 

“Hey, Alex?”

“Yeah?”

“Good, hi, I’m at the hospital right now but they’re not letting me past reception.” 

“Okay, I’ll send someone down to get you.”

“Thank you.”

He ended the call and went back out into the corridor. 

“Hercules? Could you down to reception? There’s a girl, around 19, her name is Martha Laurens. She’s John’s sister but they’re not letting her in. Can you get her up here?”

“Of course, you have a photo of her I can use to prove who she is? The secret service is pretty strict about that stuff.”

“Yeah, hang on.”

Alex unlocked his phone and pulled up Facebook. He scrolled back through John’s timeline to a photo of him and Martha from a few years ago and handed it to Mulligan. 

“Use that, if she looks too different, she’s tagged in the photo and she should have more recent pictures on her timeline.”

“Got it, thanks. See you in a minute.”

Roughly ten minutes later Hercules returned with a young woman who looked so much like John that it hurt Alex for a couple of seconds to look at her. 

“Martha!” he called. 

She looked at him and recognition flickered on her face. She rushed forwards and hugged him, taking him by surprise. 

“Thank you for calling me, Alex. It’s alright that I call you Alex right? I mean, you are my brother’s boyfriend so-”

“Yes, of course. Come on, we can sit in the waiting room.”

She nodded and followed Alex into the room. She gasped when she saw who was sleeping in the corner. 

“Yeah, sorry forgot to mention that they were here. They should really have headed back to DC, but there isn’t anything they need to be there for until tomorrow afternoon and they both care about John. And that’s my best friend, Lafayette.”

“I don’t even know what to say. I hadn’t heard from John in so long and then suddenly I see him on CNN kissing the first son of the united states. This is all a lot to take in. Is he out of surgery?”

“Yeah, he told me he hadn’t spoken to you in so long. He misses you. And yeah, he was about an hour after I called. They said that if he makes it through the night, he should be okay.”

“Okay. Have you seen him?”

“For about ten minutes, yeah. He wasn’t awake but they let me see him so long as I didn’t try to wake him up.”

“Right. I don’t think I want to see him, not until he’s awake. It’s been so long and I don’t want to see him for the first time without being able to talk to him. Is that awful?”

“No, I understand. I just sort of spoke at him. It was weird – telling him I love him without him saying it back.”

“You love him?”

“So much.”

“And he loves you?”

“That’s what he tells me.”

“Good. He deserves it after everything our father put him through.”

“Yeah. Speaking of, where is he?”

“He, uh, he didn’t want to come. He said that… I can’t repeat what he said, Alex. He does love John, I know he does, but he just doesn’t understand. He won’t even try.”

“It doesn’t matter. Well, it does, but for now John will just be happy that you’re here.” 

There was the sound of movement from the corner and Alex turned to see that George had woken up. He carefully stood up, making sure he didn’t disturb his wife of Lafayette, and walked over to where Alex and Martha were sat. Martha stood up to greet him. 

“Alex, you saw John?”

“Yeah, this is his sister, Martha.”

Washington turned to face her properly, as though only just noticing her presence. 

“Lovely to meet you, miss Laurens.” 

He held out his hands and she took it graciously. 

“It’s a pleasure, sir. I would like to thank you for accepting my brother into your family, and for staying here. It means a lot.”

“Of course, my wife and I care about your brother a lot. He has made our Alexander happy and that makes anyone a good person in my book. What time is it?”

“Just gone three am, George,” said Alex. 

“Just a few more hours and then he should be good? That’s what the nurse said, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Well it’s been lovely to meet you, miss Laurens, but I am going to try to get back to sleep. Wake me as soon as you hear anything. Have you had any sleep son?”

“Nope. I can’t sleep right now, not when I don’t know-” he cut off and his voice shook. “Just, go back to sleep. We’ll wake you when there’s news.”

At 6am Alex was once again the only one awake. Martha had gone to sleep roughly half an hour after the President did and Alex had asked Hercules to get him another coffee. 

At half past six, the nurse came back into the room. Alex stood up immediately and rushed over to her. 

“Is he alive? Please tell me he’s alive.”


	46. Chapter 46

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a hell of a lot of dialogue in this chapter.

“Mr Hamilton, you have to understand-”

“Is he alive?”

“Yes. John Laurens is alive. But you have to understand that his recovery will not be a quick one. You can see him but-”

Alex didn’t hear the rest because he pushed past her and took off running down the corridor. 

“TELL ME LATER!” he yelled over his shoulder just before turning the corner. 

He didn’t stop when he reached John’s room; he basically crashed through the door, only stopping when the sight of his John Laurens with colour back in his cheeks and his chest rising and falling as it should knocked the air out of him. He stood still, taking in the sight, but only for a few seconds. He had evidently made a great deal of noise entering the room because a nurse came in looking very confused. 

“Oh, sorry sir, I was just wondering what the noise was.”

“I sort of fell through the door. Do you – can I –”

“Do I know if you can wake him up?”

“Yeah.”

“You can. Just don’t stress him out.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll leave you to it.”

He left the room, leaving Alex alone with John once more. Alex walked over to the chair and sat down again. This time, he took John’s hand in both of his own. 

“Hey, Laurens?”

He could see movement behind John’s eyelids, as though he was trying to open his eyes but couldn’t. Alex squeezed his hand reassuringly. The eyelids flickered open. 

“Hi John.”

“Alexander?” John slowly shifted his head so that he could see who was holding his hand. When his suspicions were confirmed, he smiled at Alex. 

“Yes love, it’s me. Oh my God I’m so happy you’re okay, relatively. I love you so much.”

“I love you too. Woah, why are you crying?”

“It’s happy crying, I swear. Earlier this morning, I came to see you but you weren’t awake so you couldn’t tell me you loved me back and it was weird and now it’s just so nice to hear your voice.”

“Oh, well, I love you. There it is again. Are you okay? You must have hit your shoulder-”

“John. You were the one who got shot, I’m fine. And that’s thanks to you. You saved my life, I don’t even know how to repay you-”

“You’re here, baby girl, that’s the payment I need. My aim was to save your life, so don’t think for a moment that you owe me anything. Oh, Alexander, you haven’t been beating yourself up for this, have you?”

“I was but your sister set me straight.”

“Martha? When did you speak to her?”

“I called her when you were in surgery. She’s here. She flew from South Carolina; she’s in the waiting room, asleep.”

“She’s here?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh my God.”

“I’m going to call her, she’ll want to know you’re awake.”

Alex spent around thirty seconds on the phone before putting it back in his pocket.

“She’ll be here in a minute.”

There was a knock on the door.

“I guess she ran too. I’m going to leave you guys to catch up.” He stood up and kissed John slowly. “I love you,” he whispered before walking to the door, letting Martha in and slipping out, closing the door behind him. 

“Hi Jack,” started Martha. 

John stared at his little sister, tears forming in his eyes. 

“Come here.”

She smiled and rushed over to take his hand. 

“You’re all grown up,” he marvelled. 

“So are you. I couldn’t believe it when I saw you and Alex together. The last time I saw you, you were hiding who you were from everyone and now I see you making out with Alexander Hamilton on national TV!”

“We weren’t making out!” he protested. 

“I’m proud of you, Jacky,” she murmured, reverting to using her old nickname for him. 

“Thanks, Martha. I’m sorry it’s been so long.”

“It wasn’t your fault; you had to leave. It was dad.”

“I guess. Thank you for not letting Alexander beat himself up by the way.”

“He was convinced it was his fault.”

“I was the one who pushed him out of the way of the bullet. I made the decision.”

“Pretty dumb decision, Jack.”

“It was him or me. I love him.”

“I know.”

The door burst open to reveal Lafayette followed by an apologetic-looking George Washington.

“I’m sorry, son. I tried to stop him but he wouldn’t listen.”

John stared at the President in shock. Lafayette slowly turned from where he was staring at John to also stare at the President in shock. 

“What? You and Alexander are basically married at this point and I just spent the night sitting on a plastic chair because I wasn’t going to leave you, so yeah, I just called you son.”

“Right. Thank you for staying. And Lafayette, what are you doing here?”

“Mon ami, I was on a plane as soon as I heard what happened. You are my friend.”

“Right. Sorry, I’m a bit overwhelmed.”

“Yes, sorry,” apologised George, “we’ll go, just wanted to check on you. Martha sends her best but she’s currently trying to coordinate about a dozen people to sort out our trip back to DC and our schedules.”

“Tell her thank you. And is Alexander out there?”

“Yes.”

“Could you send him in on your way out?”

“Of course. Come on Gilbert. It’s good to see you awake John, and it has been lovely to meet you Martha; I doubt I’ll be able to say goodbye again before I leave.”

“And you, Mr President.”

“Thanks Mr- George,” John amended his sentence when George raised his eyebrow at the formal address. 

George and Lafayette left the room and were replaced by Alex. 

“You just called the President ‘George’ to his face,” gasped Martha. 

“Yes. I do spend my time ‘making out’ with his son, as you so delicately put it. He felt as though the whole ‘Mr President’ thing was a pointless formality.”

“John, I’m pretty sure some of the other stuff we do might be a more valid reason; I sort of made out with Eliza once or twice and she never called him George.”

“Alexander, if you would please not talk about ‘the other stuff’ whilst my little sister is in the room!”

“I’m sure she’s heard worse, John.”

“Yes, but not about her brother and the son of the President of the united States. Also, your father called me son. He said that we are practically married.”

“He’s been scared shitless all night, let him have this one. Do you mind if I call Angelica? I said I would keep her updated and I’m sure she’d love to hear your voice.”

“Alright, and yeah of course. But after that do you mind if I go to sleep? I love you both but I’m so tired.”

“Yeah, of course, sorry,” said Alex before pulling out his phone again and dialling Angelica. 

“Hello? Alex?”

“Morning Ang, John’s awake.”

“Oh thank fuck. Sorry, it’s been a long night.”

“No need to apologise. Do you want to speak to him quickly?”

“Yes!”

He handed the phone over. 

“Morning Miss Schuyler.”

Alex couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation but John was smiling. Martha let go of John’s hand and moved to stand next to Alex. 

“I know I’ve said it already but just thank you, again, for making him happy.”

“He makes me happy,” he returned, shrugging, "and I'm so grateful that he chooses to do that day-in, day-out."


	47. Chapter 47

John woke up to find Alex staring at him happily from the seat next to the bed.

“What time is it?” he asked sleepily, reaching out to take Alex’s hand. Alex met him in the middle and moved John’s hand to his own knee.

“It’s just gone six pm. You’ve been asleep for nearly twelve hours,” supplied Alex.

John looked at his boyfriend and suddenly noticed how exhausted he looked. There were dark bags under his eyes and his blinking was slow and heavy.

“Have you had any sleep, baby girl?”

Alex bit his lip and wouldn’t look John in the eye.

“Alexander. When did you last sleep?”

“The night before we came to Austin.”

“Alexander! God, no wonder you look so awful.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You know what I mean. Go to sleep.”

“I can’t.”

“Alexander, I’ll be fine. You can stay there, just get a couple of hours at least. I’ll be the same whether you’re awake or not, in fact, if I’m not worried about you dying from exhaustion, I imagine my recovery would be much speedier.”

“Okay, sorry. I just can’t get it out of my head – seeing you lying on the floor like that. I don't want to wake up to find that something has happened."

"Look at where we are. I'm getting the best care here, Alexander. You'll wake up if something happens but I promise nothing will."

Alex sighed in defeat but smiled gratefully.

"Okay," he whispered, "only for you." He shifted in his chair and closed his eyes, realising as he did so just how tired he was. 

John smiled as he realised that Alex had fallen asleep almost as soon as his eyes were closed. He looked so at peace and even with the bags under his eyes, John thought he looked beautiful.

John fell asleep too, only an hour after waking up. Getting shot really takes it out of you. The two of them only woke up the next morning when a nurse came in with the intention of waking them up.

"Mr Laurens? Mr Hamilton?" 

Alex opened his eyes, blinking slowly in the bright light.

"Hmm?" That came from John, an attempt at a question but without the effort of actual words.

"I just wanted to tell you that Mr Laurens is absolutely out of the woods. We are happy that there is no longer a risk of infection and if you continue to rest as you are, you'll be able to return to Washington by the end of the week. Normally we'd say you could be discharged in a couple of days but we want to wait a little longer as you have to fly. Also, we are going to have to arrange for a daily visit to check up on you for the next couple of weeks."

Alexander could have cried with relief. John was out of the woods. 

"John?"

John turned to look at Alex.

"I think you should stay at the residence whilst you recover, for security reasons and for my own comfort, yeah?"

"Mm, sounds good to me."

"Okay, in which case, we have a personal physician for George, Martha and I, would he be able to do the daily check ups?"

"Yes. We'll send your notes over when you leave and you'll be set. That's all I need for now, I'll see you later." He left the room, closing the door quietly on his way out. 

"How are you?" asked Alex, tentatively. 

"Okay. Kind of uncomfortable but that's to be expected. The pain is dulled by all the drugs they're pumping into me. Are you okay?"

"I wasn't the one who got shot."

"Alexander, you know what I mean; are you mentally okay?"

"I'm still scared. He was aiming for me. That's not what I'm scared about exactly. I mean, I don't really want to get shot, obviously, but as long as you're with me, you're in danger. I'm assuming he was aiming at me because I'm gay. You're gay too, and you're dating me. What if it happens again? What if they aim for you and I can't save you? Or they aim for me and you do the same but this time you don't live? I need you, John. I need you and I'm scared." Alex had tears in his eyes which he wiped at with the back of his hand. 

"Alexander, we're both here now. Security will be up and if you don't want to, we don't have to go to events like that. Did they get the guy? They must have done. He didn't win, he'll be locked up and he'll be a warning to anyone who wants to try to hurt us again. When I'm better, if we go out and show everyone that this has only made us stronger, it'll show people that we won't stand for this kind of thing in America. At the pride parade people were thanking you because you made them feel validated. I don't want to hide away and make others feel like they have to hide who they are. And Alexander, I'd take a bullet for you again, any day. I need you too, you know?"

"You amaze me, John Laurens."

"And I love you, Alexander Hamilton. Let's show them that we are stronger than they are, eh?"

"Yeah. You're right. I love you too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a short filler, soz.


	48. Chapter 48

“Welcome to your new home.”

“You say that like we haven’t fucked in that bed multiple times.”

On the Sunday after the shooting John was discharged from the hospital in Austin and allowed to fly back to DC on Air Force 1. Alex had been babying him for most of the flight, only stopping when John told him to quit it in a rather frustrated manner. When they landed, Alex had apologised and John took his hand, sending a smile that told him he wasn’t really mad. Martha had been there at the residence to welcome them home with a hug and a cup of tea. Shortly after, the physician came to visit John, giving him instructions detailing what he could and couldn’t do. He had left fairly quickly and Alex finally was able to help John with his bags and settle him into the room that would be theirs for the next fortnight or so. 

“Just pretend. I’m trying to be a gracious boyfriend, welcoming you to my home, and your one-track mind immediately mentions sex. Honestly John, have some class.”

“Okay, I’m sorry. I appreciate all of this, I really do. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have you.”

“You wouldn’t have gotten shot.”

“Alexander! Please, baby girl, stop blaming yourself.”

“I know, I know, I’m sorry.” Alex stepped forward and kissed John slowly and delicately. “I just love you so damn much.”

“And I love you too. What’s happening for dinner? I’m starving.”

“It’s up to you. Martha said she’s happy to cook but if you just feel like ordering a take away and going to bed early, that’s fine too.”

“I think take away? Firstly, I don’t want to inconvenience her, and secondly I’d rather just have a relaxing evening with you. Is that okay?”

“Anything, my dearest Laurens. What do you want?”

“I’m feeling like some Chinese would be good?”

“Mm, definitely.” 

The Chinese arrived at seven minutes past six. They had probably ordered far more than was reasonable for two people, but they surmised that George and Martha could always help themselves when they got back. They were sat on the floor in front of the sofa with a bunch of take-out cartons in front of them. 

“John?”

“Hm?”

“I never asked. Are you okay, mentally?”

“Surprisingly, yes. I think it’s because I sort of meant to get shot if you get what I mean? Like, I knew I had to save you so… I don’t know. I did what I wanted to do? I saved you, and that’s enough? Pfft, I don’t know how brains work.”

“Okay. I don’t either, but so long as you are okay, I’m happy.”

“What did I ever do to deserve you?”

“Babe, you took a bullet for me I think I’m the one who doesn’t deserve you.” 

“You, Alexander Hamilton, are the most amazing person I have ever met. You are so beautiful and smart and charismatic and you deserve everything.”

“Coming from you. You are genuinely the most beautiful person I have ever seen. You’re so hot, like damn. You already know that I cried the first time I saw you. Those freckles, J, they got me helpless.”

“Alright, alright, we’re both gorgeous, I feel like this argument of who is hotter could go on for an eternity so we’ll just have to agree to disagree.”

“Mm, probably for the best. Are you done?” Alex indicated towards the food in front of them, forcing John to return his attention to his long-since abandoned food.

“Oh, yeah.”

“Cool, I’m gonna tidy up and then we can go to bed, yeah?”

“Sounds good. I’m really tired.”

“I think I’m going to read for a while, it’s a bit early for me, but I’ll do it in bed so I’m still available for cuddling.”

“Wow, so macho.”

“Cuddling is the best and you know it, now come on, if you go now, you can be done in the bathroom before I want to use it and then I won’t bug you to hurry up; win-win for everyone.”

“Alright, alright. I’m going. Can you give us a hand up?”

Alex’s smirk suddenly turned to a slightly worried smile. 

“Of course!” He stood up and held his hand out to John, who took it gratefully. Alex pulled him up slowly, careful not to put any strain on John’s torso. 

When John was fully stood, he wrapped his arms around Alex’s waist and pressed his face into Alex’s hair. 

“I love you.”

“Mm, me too. I mean, I love you, not me.”

“You do love yourself though, don’t you?”

“John, you know how obnoxious I am, come on,” joked Alex. 

“That’s not the same and you know it’s not. If you don’t love yourself, Alexander, just know that I will love you until you do. I will do everything I can to make you realise that you are perfect, the way you are.” He let go of Alex and placed a quick kiss on his forehead before walking towards the bathroom, nearest Alex’s room.

Alex stared after John for a while, even once he had disappeared from sight. Alex had always been stuck in the middle of a hurricane. It was only now, hearing John tell him he was perfect, that he realised it wasn’t just the actual hurricane when he was younger, or finals, but his entire life. John was the calm in the storm that was his existence, and he never wanted to step out into the rain again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Four things:  
> 1\. sorry this is short again  
> 2\. I'm not really comfortable writing smut, hence the mentions of them having sex despite y'all never hearing about it, I might go back at some point and add it in, or get someone else to write it, or have a separate story in this series  
> 3\. sorry if none of this (especially the metaphors) makes sense, I was really rather drunk when I wrote this (yes, I realise it is a Tuesday, do not judge my bad decisions)  
> 4.Some people have commented mentioning fanart for this fic. If you have created any, firstly thank you so much, secondly make sure you comment as to where I can find it!


	49. Chapter 49

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER IS SO BORING I'M SORRY

John woke up drenched in sweat, breathing heavily. He shot a glance at Alex to make sure he was still asleep. He was. John clambered out of bed slowly, wincing slightly when the skin around the wound was pulled taut, and left the room. He could feel himself shaking as he walked towards the kitchen. He swore loudly when he reached the kitchen and turned the light on to reveal George sitting at the breakfast bar, eating a bowl of Coco Krispies. 

“Well this is embarrassing,” mumbled George. 

“Sorry. I, uh, I woke up and needed to get a glass of water. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be in here.”

“It’s no problem. Are you okay, Son? You’re shaking.”

“I’m fine. I think I had a nightmare or something, but I don’t remember it and I feel fine now, apart from the shaking which is just annoying,” admitted John. 

“Sugar helps with shaking. Help yourself,” he said, pointing towards the open cereal box on the side. 

John hesitated for a couple of seconds before shrugging and walking over. He made himself a bowl of cereal, grabbed a glass of water and sat down opposite George. It was definitely the most surreal thing that had ever happened; he was sitting in the kitchen of the White House residence, eating cereal with the President in the middle of the night.

“I’m honestly surprised that you haven’t shown any signs of mental damage up until this point.”

“I guess I’m rather strong mentally. Besides, my intention was to save your son. I made the decision and managed to do what I needed to do. That’s different to getting shot randomly.”

“Yes, I suppose it would be. I don’t believe I have thanked you for that, by the way. Martha and I were pushed to the ground immediately but I looked up and saw that man pointing a gun at my boy and believe me, I would have jumped in front of it myself if I could. I feel so awful, John, but I was so relieved when I saw what you did. I was so relieved and I felt so guilt for that but I want you to understand that once the immediate danger to him was out of the way, there was nothing I wanted more than for you to be okay. He wasn’t happy for a long time. He always put on a brave face but I could tell. He barely slept, barely ate but since he met you, he’s been a new person; a better version of himself. He’s asleep right now and it’s not even three am. So thank you, John. For saving my son – from the bullet, sure – but also from himself.” 

“George, I-”

“You don’t have to say anything. Just, keep loving him. That’ll be enough. Enjoy your cereal.” With that, George stood up, placed his dish in the sink, and left the room. 

John finished his cereal and climbed back in to bed. 

“John?” came a groggy voice from the other side of the bed. 

“Sorry, baby girl, I didn’t mean to wake you. I just had to get some water.”

Alex made an incomprehensible noise and reached out his arms. 

“You’re so clingy.”

“So are you.”

“Hm, true.” John laughed and shifted towards Alex who wrapped his arm around his boyfriend and snuggled into his chest. 

“G’night, John.”

“G’night baby girl.”

The next morning Alex had to leave the White House with Martha for some sort of fundraiser event that they had been invited to. Alex had been inclined to decline the invitation, maintaining that he had to stay with John, but John had pointed out that they were nearing the end of the two weeks of John staying in the residence 24/7 and should probably get used to the separation. They had surprised each other and themselves with how clingy they could be. Alex was a very tactile person only when it came to John. He couldn’t get enough of cuddling. John always wanted to talk to Alex, or rather hear Alex talk to him. They both tried to make out with the other as much as possible, getting slightly frustrated that John’s injury meant they couldn’t go any farther. Well, John was getting frustrated, Alex was being rather overprotective and it had taken an awful lot to convince him that lying on a sofa and making out for a couple of hours wouldn’t be adverse to John’s recovery. 

So yeah, John was probably right in saying that they needed to get used to the separation. Throughout the few weeks since the shooting, Alex had only left John for a few minutes at a time. They hadn’t argued yet, but that luck could only hold for so long considering how much they were with each other. The only reason that John wasn’t bored out of his mind was because Alex was willing to spend his time with him, but he was sure that it couldn’t be long before his resentment for being shut up turned into resentment for his talkative boyfriend. He couldn’t wait to get back to work. An interim photographer had been called in to replace John whilst he couldn’t leave the residence but she wasn’t nearly as talented as him, meaning that he would be editing photographs as soon as he got back. A couple of days of full work would be great, and then he could be back to the safe area of finding Alex’s voice a definite relief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AGAIN I'M SORRY THAT THIS WAS SO BORING


	50. Chapter 50

John’s first week back at work was fairly busy. He knew he had to edit some photos but he wasn’t expecting to have to do much photography himself but the Vice President was speaking at a dinner, the President was meeting the British PM, Martha was appearing at a charity gala, and Alex was giving a speech at a high school in DC. He was thrown back in at the deep end which worried Alex but it made John feel a lot better. He was worried that he would feel useless but he had been kept busy. 

On Saturday he finished at five. He and Alex were going on a double date with Maria and Eliza. 

“Are you sure you’re good to go out? You’ve been doing a lot this week and I’m worried that you’re not getting enough rest.”

“I’m sure, Alexander. We haven’t seen them since before Texas and I know they’ve been anxious to see me. I feel fine. Now go and get dressed.”

Alex stepped forwards and kissed John slowly, lips barely parted. John moved his right hand so that it rested at the nape of Alex’s neck, pulling the man closer. He rested the other hand on Alex’s hip. Alex slung his arms over John’s shoulders and moved closer. They stood like that for a few minutes, kissing slowly and contentedly. John eventually moved his hands to Alex’s chest and pushed him away slightly. 

“Alex, come on, I know what you’re doing. I promise you that I’m feeling fine. As soon as I start to feel tired, I’ll let you know and we can come home but I’ve missed our friends and we promised them we’d meet them.”

Surprisingly, they were only five minutes late in spite of all of Alex’s attempts at delaying them. The date was in an Italian restaurant only a short drive from the White House. Eliza and Maria were already at the table when they arrived. Both women stood to greet them, each taking far more time to say hello to John. Alex pretended to be offended but really he was glad that they were focusing on John because they weren’t paying attention to the way that he was slightly on edge, worried that something would happen and John wouldn’t be okay. 

Thankfully, Alex didn’t stay on edge for long. The conversation soon picked up and he got distracted by stories about Maria and Eliza’s relationship as well as the warm, reassuring presence of John’s hand on his thigh. 

John stayed true to his word. After their main course, John leant over and whispered in Alex’s ear that he was getting tired. Alex handed money to cover what the two of them had eaten to Eliza and they left, allowing Maria and Eliza to finish their meal alone. There was a car waiting for them outside and John winced slightly as he got in. 

“Are you okay?” asked Alex, worry furrowed in his brow. 

“Yeah, I’m good. I’ve been doing a lot this week and sitting and having a meal like that was probably just a little too much. There’s still a dull ache and it huts a little to bend to get into the car.”

“Are you sure that you are okay?”

“Yes, baby girl. I just need to change into some more comfy clothing and lie down.”

“Okay. You look really hot by the way. Dark red is such a good colour on you. How many suits do you have in that colour?”

“Too many,” chuckled John. He reached over and took Alex’s hand, rubbing his thumb over Alex’s knuckles. “I even have some underwear in this colour.”

Alex’s eyes widened. 

“How is this something I am only just learning? You know how much I love you in that colour. Oh my God I better get shown them soon. That’s so hot.”

“You’re so hot.”

When they arrived back at the White House, John went into Alex’s room and changed immediately into grey sweatpants and Alex’s Columbia hoodie. The hoodie that usually swamped Alex was the perfect fit for John, pulled taut across his shoulders with sleeves that ended at his wrist instead of over his hands. 

“Do you want to just lie here and watch Netflix?” asked Alex when he too entered the room. He walked over to his wardrobe and changed into chequered cotton pyjama pants and one of John’s sweaters. 

“Yeah, can we have popcorn?”

“Definitely, I’ll go get that, you choose what to watch. Salted or sweet?”

“Salted, duh.”

John fell asleep roughly half way through the film – he chose The Shawshank Redemption in the end – and Alex carefully closed the laptop, moved the popcorn to the floor and manoeuvred himself and John so that they were under the covers. He lay like that for a while. At some point John shifted so that he was leaning on Alex’s chest. Alex threw his arm over John whilst he continued to think. As he listened to the steady breathing of his boyfriend, Alex wondered how this gorgeous man had come to be his. He’d never dated someone properly before, he didn’t know how. He didn’t know how he could share his life with someone, he was so used to barely surviving on his own. Despite all of this, John Laurens had stayed. He had made Alex a better person. Alex had to look after himself now, or else he would worry John which would, in turn, upset Alex. He didn’t understand how they worked, but he had come to the decision that he didn’t really need to know why; so long as it worked. And it did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that there wasn't an update last night, my head wasn't working properly lol


	51. Chapter 51

“Can I draw you?”

“You draw?” Alex sat up from where he was lying across John’s lap and looked at him with awe.

“Not as much as I used to, but yeah. I’m not really that great, but I think I’d like to give it a try again. You have a nice face,” replied John, starting to blush.

“Nice?” teased Alex.

“Fucking gorgeous.

“That’s better.”

“So? Can I?”

“Yeah, of course.”

John gently shoved Alex off and moved to go to his bag.

“What, now?”

“Yup. I’m nice and awake right now and you’re not buzzing with caffeine.”

“Okay, I guess. Where do you want me?”

“Just sitting up, against the headboard maybe? You can read or write or whatever, so long as you don’t move too much.”

“I’m really bad at sitting still, J., you know that.”

“But it’s for me, Alexander.”

“I hate that you know how whipped I am for you.”

“I’m the same for you, Alexander, and you know it. Just sit down,” laughed John.

“Mm, one condition.”

“Oh?”

Alex grinned and stood up. He grabbed John’s hand and pulled him into a kiss. John let out a surprised ‘mmph’ but soon gained composure and wrapped his arms over Alex’s shoulders, deepening the kiss as he did so. Alex pulled John towards the bed and they fell on to it together without breaking the kiss.

“Alex-” John gave a small attempt to pull away. He half wanted to keep going, but also wanted to draw Alex. “Alexander, come on.”

Alex sighed but pulled away smiling.

“Alright then, get your drawing stuff. I’m going to read.” He stood up and grabbed a random book from the shelf.

“Thank you.” John stood too and grabbed his sketchpad and pencils from his bag. He sat cross-legged at the opposite end of Alex bed. He took a few seconds just to stare at his boyfriend, looking at where they were and thinking about how they started.

Alex flicked his eyes up away from the book to meet John’s. John smiled and turned his attention to sketching the basic outline of Alex’s face, starting with the shape of his head and then marking the guiding points: the centre of his eyes, the bridge and tip of his nose, his lips and his ears. He marked them each with a small line before moving on to the hairline. Alex had his hair pulled up into a bun. He had put it up hours before, meaning that there were various strands that had fallen out of the bun and were now framing his face. John thought he looked ethereal. John started with Alex’s eyes. He had practically drowned in them the first time he saw the man’s face. He was pleased to find that while they were just as captivating now as they were then, they were no longer carrying dark bags beneath them. John was so proud. He didn’t realise that he was crying until a tear dropped onto the page, thankfully missing and pencil lines drawn so far. He sniffed slightly and wiped his eyes.

“Are you okay?” asked Alex with wide, concerned eyes.

“I’m really great.” He carefully threw the sketchbook and pencils to the floor and crawled over to sit next to Alex. He leant his head on Alex’s shoulder and Alex moved his arm so that was hugging John. “Read to me?”

Alex smiled and pressed a kiss to John’s temple before turning back to his book and beginning to read aloud.

"There's more of gravy than of grave about you-"

"What the fuck?"

"It's Dickens, Laurens, honestly. I'll start from the beginning. Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it, and-"

"Scrooge? Is this A Christmas Carol?"

"Yes."

"Huh. I've never read it, I've only seen the Disney films. You know? The Muppets one and the animated Jim Carrey one."

"Well the book is amazing. Dickens was a genius. May I?"

"Yes, sorry, go on."

"Scrooge signed it, and Scrooge's name was good upon change for anything he chose to put his hand to. Marley was as dead as a door nail. Mind, not that I mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door nail; I might have been inclined, myself, to regard a coffin nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. But, the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the country's done for-"

"Was that you speaking, or-"

"Nah, that's Dickens. He breaks the fourth wall a lot. It's great. It continues: you will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door nail."

"You know, I've never thought about that, but it doesn't make an awful lot of sense. What is so dead about a door nail? I mean, I know it's a nail, so it's dead, but like, why more so than any other piece of metal?"

"It's an idiom, love, it's not supposed to make much sense literally. Now, the mention of Marley's funeral brings me back to the point I started from. There is no doubt that Marley was dead. This must be distinctly understood, or nothing remarkable can come of the story I am going to relate."

"God, he takes a while to get into it, doesn't he?"

"He's a genius, Laurens, do not disparage his methods. If we were not perfectly convinced that Hamlet's father died before the play began, there would be nothing more remarkable in his taking a stroll at night, upon his own ramparts, than there would be in any other middle-aged gentleman rashly turning out after dark in a breezy spot, say St Paul's churchyard for instance, literally to astonish his son's weak mind."

"Yay Hamlet! Favourite Shakespeare play, by far."

"Mm, Hamlet was good although I must say, I preferred Much Ado About Nothing."

"Ah yes, good old Beatrice and Benedick."

"Precisely. Men are giddy things. He was a genius too, Shakespeare. I loved his sonnets."

"Shamefully, I only know one. Shall I recite it to you?" Asked John, quietly. 

Alex nodded.

"Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate. Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and Summer's lease hath all too short a date. Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, and often is his gold complexion dimmed. But every fair from fair sometime declines, by chance or through nature's changing course untrimmed. But thy eternal Summer shall not fade, nor lose possession of that thou fair ow'st. Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade, when in eternal lines to time thou grow'st. So long as men can breathe, and eyes can see, so long live this, and this gives life to thee."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) I am so sorry there wasn't an update last night. I'm having writers' block, hence the lack of plot progression atm. 
> 
> 2) I am also sorry if there are any mistakes in either the A Christmas Carol or Sonnet 18. I couldn't be bothered to look either up so they are both from memory. I know that the punctuation in the sonnet isn't as written, but I wrote it how I say it. 
> 
> 3) John is a little ooc in this chapter, sorry but it's another sad symptom of writers' block. 
> 
> 4) Thank you all for the amazing comments, they honestly make me feel so happy and appreciated. Much love to all of you.


	52. Chapter 52

Angelica Schuyler wanted to cry. Being the press secretary in the White House had its good days and it had its bad days. She was having a very bad day. Every so often, a member of the press would get hold of a piece of information which would spread as a rumour throughout the White House press corps until the print deadline. Sometimes it turned out to be true, sometimes it was completely inaccurate. It generally tended to be something to do with an upcoming bill or a meeting of the senate or the house.  Today, it was worse. It was gossip. She hated having to defend someone she knew to the world. This was the worst rumour that she had encountered during her time as press secretary, and it involved two of her friends. She was only glad that she had the warning from Danny Concannon before the morning briefing.   
   
“Angelica!”  
   
“What is it Danny? I’m in a rush.”  
   
“You won’t be once you hear this.”  
   
She stopped walking and turned to face him. He looked genuinely concerned.   
   
“My office.”  
   
He nodded and turned to walk in the other direction. Angelica followed him into her office and closed the door behind them.   
   
“What’s it today? The President has yet another secret plan to tackle inflation?”  
   
“Uh, no. It’s about Mr. Hamilton.”  
   
“Alex?” she was properly listening now.   
   
“Yes, and Mr. Laurens.”  
   
“There’s something going around about Alex and John?!”  
   
“Yes.”  
   
“Well what the fuck is it? Sorry, sorry. It’s not your fault. What is it?”  
   
“Someone, I don’t know who, got it this morning that Alexander has been cheating on John. I don’t know if there’s any evidence, or if there is any truth to the matter but-”  
   
“There is absolutely no truth to it. I have never see anyone love anyone as much as those two love each other.”  
   
“Okay, but that doesn’t really matter right now. It’s a rumour and now the entire press corps has it. It’s been a slow news day so far, so unless we declare war on someone in the next few minutes, it’s going to be the first question you get.”  
   
“Okay. Thank you, Danny. I’ll go and speak to them now, I’d rather explain it than they hear it on the news. I’ll see you for the briefing in ten.”

She opened the door for him, closed it after him and swore. Loudly. She picked up the receiver of the phone on her desk and rang the number of the residence. 

"Hello?"

"Alex?"

"Ang?"

"Yes, sorry it's so early. I'm on my way over. Is John there?"

"What? No. He's at his desk."

"Well tell him to get his ass to the residence. I'm senior staff, I outrank him, he can leave his desk on my orders."

"Okay, okay, this doesn't sound good."

"Nope. I'll be there in three minutes. Make sure he's there."

Alex put down the phone and immediately grabbed his mobile from the side. He pulled up John's contact and called him.

"Hi love, what can I do for you?"

"Haul ass back here right now. Orders from Angelica. Be here in three minutes. But don't run, if you're not here she'll have to deal. I'm not having you running when you're still technically recovering."

"Okay. Right I'm on my way." John ended the call.

Two minutes later Alex heard someone enter the residence. Unless John had decided to go to work in heels, it was Angelica.

"He's not here yet! I told him he wasn't allowed to run."

"Ugh, fine. I really haven't got long though." 

"Sorry, sorry!" Came John's voice from the hallway. "I saw you going in but I can't run. What's up?"

"Right, yes. Alex. Are you cheating on John?"

"What?!" Both men let out the same indignant shout.

"Fucking hell, Ang, of course not."

"Right, thought so but I have to ask. Anyway, I wanted to tell you guys now that the first question I get at the briefing in-" she looked at her watch, "-five minutes will be about Alex's supposed affair. Danny warned me that someone got a tip or something. I have no idea who or what they have but just, fyi. Right, got to go!" With that she rushed out of the residence.

"Just to be clear, you're definitely not cheating on me, right?" Asked John.

"Definitely not. Shit, I'm sorry J. This kind of comes with the territory but I'm still sorry our relationship is now subject to rumours and speculation."

"It's not your fault." 

"But still."

"Yeah, it sucks. I knew what I was getting into but even so, it's a tad overwhelming." 

"I'm not sure you ever get used to it. Come on, let's go watch Ang from her office."

They sped towards the West Wing and sat in Angelica's office. Alex turned on the TV in there just in time to hear the first question.

"There's been a lot going round this morning that Alexander has been cheating on John. Can you tell us anything?"

"Firstly, Jane, it's Mr Hamilton and Mr Laurens in here. Now I don't know who you have gotten this from but whoever it is needs to get their sources checked. Mr Hamilton has not been cheating on Mr Laurens. I have just been to speak with them, and they were equally shocked that this rumour even exists. I would like to remind whoever started this frankly ridiculous rumour that this is the White House Press Corps, not some daytime gossip talk show. Next question, and it better not be about Mr Hamilton and Mr Laurens."


	53. Chapter 53

Alex hated being idle. He had completed college in two years and now he was doing nothing. He was at a standstill. He needed a job. 

The long term goal was to work in the White House. Unfortunately for him, unless he could get them to change the constitution (which, actually he really did want because the constitution wasn't written to be permanent and as the founding fathers had said, it should have changed with the generations to meet needs and deal with problems they never could have predicted), he couldn't be President as he wasn't born in the US. 

But he could deal with that rather sad situation in the future because he couldn't really work at the White House whilst it was under the Washington administration. 

Just as he started to formulate a short term plan in his head, his phone rang. 

"Hello?" He picked up without looking at caller ID. 

"Hamilton?"

"Aaron Burr, sir! How are you?"

"Yes, hello. I'm well thanks. I'm actually in DC. I was wondering if you'd like to get a coffee or something? We haven't spoken since graduation and from what I'm seeing in the news, there's a lot to catch up on."

"Yeah, that sounds great. Although maybe you should come here instead. The tabloids are still focused on this rumour that I'm having an affair and me sitting in a coffee shop with a handsome stranger might not help."

"I'm touched. Okay, how do I get in, exactly? And also when?"

"Now? I'm bored."

"Goodness, Hamilton, evidently not much has changed at all. I can be there in half an hour."

"Evidently. Okay, I'll send you a text telling you how to get in. I need to speak to some people first but I'll see you soon. It's good to hear from you, Burr."

"Yes, you too."

Alex put the phone is his pocket when Aaron ended the call. He'd sort of forgotten about Burr, what with everything going on, but it really was good to hear from him. He was bored and having someone to argue with, or rather argue at, could be really helpful. 

Aaron arrived half an hour later, almost to the second. 

"This is incredibly strange," Aaron started, without so much as a 'hello', "you living in the White House." He clarified. "I mean, to me, you're just my irritating college roommate. I guess I kind of forget that to the rest of the world you are the first son of the United States."

"Hello, Aaron, good to see you too."

"Don't get cute with me, Hamilton."

"Aw, Aaron, you think I'm cute?"

"You called me handsome over the phone, I'd say we're even."

"Alright, fine. Was there any particular reason you called?" 

"Part of it was genuinely for a catch up; I'm in the area and a lot has happened. I wanted to congratulate you on coming out, and for sorting it out with Laurens."

"Thanks. It took us a while, but we got there. What about you, Burr? You got a special someone on the side?"

Aaron suddenly wouldn't meet Alex's eyes.

"You do! You so do! Who is it? Do I know them?"

"Her name is Theodosia. She's sort of dating this other guy..."

"Burr!"

"I know, I know. It's wrong. She wants to break up with him but it's complicated, so for now we're seeing each other as much as we can."

"Just, don't get yourself hurt."

"I won't. I think you're forgetting that you are the reckless one of the two of us."

"Damn right I am. Anyway, you said part of it was catching up, what's the other part?"

"You remember André?"

"John?"

"Yeah. Well, he's working in DC at an Independent paper. It's mainly politics and social issues. Anyway, his older brother is the chief editor and André says that they're looking for writers. He asked me if I wanted to join their team. Naturally, I agreed. I won't be writing anything myself, we know that's not my strong point, but I'll be helping with public image, bipartisanship etc.-"

"Of course you're doing bipartisanship-"

"Shove it. I'm not fence-sitting, I'm just making sure that there is no way the right can use it as an example when they use 'liberal' as a bad word. Anyway, he asked if I knew any writers. I'm here to ask if you'd consider writing a weekly column for them."

"Seriously?!"

"Seriously. I spoke to André about it, obviously, and he said that they're fine with you writing under a pseudonym."

"Burr, I could kiss you right now."

"The media would definitely have something to write about. I thought we were trying to get them away from the whole affair thing?"

"Fuck off," said Alex, with absolutely no anger in his voice. "Give André my number. Tell him to get someone to give me a call or whatever."

"Brilliant. Now I am awfully sorry, but that's really all I needed. I'm actually rather busy, I just wasn't sure how long you'd talk for before we got to the point."

"Just listening to your advice, Burr. Talk less. Smile more. You're my inspiration."

"I knew there was a reason we haven't spoken since graduation."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that this was short and that I didn't update last night, but I have GCSEs starting in two months so everything's a bit up in the air atm.


	54. Chapter 54

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy this little bit o' fluff

John and Alex were sitting in the kitchen eating lunch. It was a Sunday and neither of them had any work to do all day, so they were both still in pyjamas. George was, naturally, in the Oval, and Martha was up in Vermont for the weekend. 

The previous day, George's physician had been to check on John and was pleased with the recovery he had made. He had said that he would visit one last time and then John was free to do as he pleased. 

It was good news, and Alex was mostly happy about it, but he was worried that John would stop staying in the residence because he didn't need to. As much as Alex knew that what John did was very much up to John, he couldn't help but be a little selfish and hope that John would stay. He was used to having a regular sleeping schedule and it was a concern that without his boyfriend to keep him in check, especially with a potential writing job on offer, said schedule could fly out the window. Also he'd miss the older man. A lot. 

"Hey, John?"

"Yes, baby girl?"

"You know how you're staying here for security and stuff as well as it being easier for the physician to see you?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, you're nearly fully recovered, so you won't need checkups anymore."

"Yeah..?"

"And there hasn't been anything indicative of another attack."

"Right..."

"So technically you don't really have to stay here anymore, but, I was wondering - and it's completely up to you - I was wondering if maybe you'd like to stay here anyway? You know, officially move in? I don't think I'd have asked so soon if it weren't for the fact you've had to stay here already, but I think I'd find it really awful not waking up with you next to me now. You could bring your stuff, and then maybe think about selling your apartment? If, you know, that's something you think you'd want." Alex finished his proposal with a vague arm gesture and looked down. 

John smiled fondly at the younger man. 

"I mean, it makes sense. I work here."

"Oh right, yeah. Of course. That's logical. Can't believe I didn't think of that. It would have been the best argument." He continued to look down as he spoke, paying careful attention to a spot on the breakfast bar. He felt totally vulnerable and he didn't like it.

"For someone so smart, you really are thick sometimes."

Alex furrowed his brow and bit his lip. He couldn't tell if John was rejecting the offer. He slowly looked up, expecting to see an exasperated expression clear on John's face, but instead he only saw amused affection. 

"Like I said, the fact that I work here does make it logical, but it's nowhere near being the best argument. The best argument is that I don't have to stop waking up with you every morning. Of course I want to stay here."

Alex broke out into a grin and moved round the counter to hug John. He didn't give him a quick, tight hug and step away, or an awkward pat-on-the-back hug either. He simply slid his arms around John's waist and leant into him, eyes closed. 

John kissed him on the forehead, earning a small huff from Alex, and returned the embrace. 

"I'm so glad Jefferson was an asshole."

"Alexander, if you think that having met you once, I wouldn't have found some way to bug you until you agreed to at least be my friend, you are sincerely mistaken. But Jefferson being an asshole helped, so I guess I'm kind of glad about that too."

"Good. Can we watch a movie?"

"Yeah, sounds good. In the lounge or in your room?" 

Alex stepped back from the hug and pressed a chaste kiss to John's lips. 

"In our room," he replied. 

Once they had settled on their bed, Alex grabbed his laptop from the floor and pulled up Netflix. 

"What do you want to watch?"

John shrugged.

"Something light, I guess? Something that's not going to make me cry."

Alex nodded and scrolled through the suggested titles for a few seconds. He chose Mulan.

"You would make a great Disney Princess," commented John as the opening credits began. "You have the hair for it. And the tragic backstory."

"By that logic, so would you."

"Nah, I'm the dashing knight that comes to save you from the clutches of evil, duh."

"Oh, of course. My very own Prince Charming."

"Exactly. Although Charming is never hot in the movies. I feel like I'm more on Prince Phillip's level, you know, Sleeping Beauty."

"Mm, definitely," agreed Alex. "You're the hottest. I wish there were a Disney film with gay princes."

"They'd only kill one of them."

"True. It's starting."

"I love this film." 

"Yes, me too, so hush."

They began the film sitting next to each other, leaning on the headboard. Twenty minutes in, they were leant completely on one another, holding hands and stretched out. John lifted Alex's hand with his own and kissed it lightly before returning it to the mattress. 

Alex turned his head and smiled before returning his attention to the screen. 

John was enjoying domestic bliss and relished in the fact that he now was sure he got to live like this for as long as Alex would have him. All he had to do was look around the room, look at his situation, to realise just how lucky he was to be alive.


	55. Chapter 55

A week after Burr's visit, Alex got a call from John André. 

"Hey there Ham, how ya doing?"

"Morning, André. It's good to hear from you. I'm good thanks, how's things with you?" 

"Yeah, man. I'm good. Congrats by the way, on you and that photographer guy."

"Thanks André."

"Sure, sure. Burr told you what I'm calling about right?"

"A weekly column in an independent newspaper?"

"Yeah. You can write under a pseudonym. We want you to write a political opinion column. We were hoping at least some weeks could be dedicated to LGBT+ rights because we don't have anyone on the team available to focus on that right now. And then pretty much whatever else you wanted to write about. I saw your stuff in college, Ham. That shit was better than anything I've managed and I spent twice the time there that you did. And some people have said that's because your the First Son, but I know it's because your the smartest guy I've ever met. We'd love to have you on the team."

"Not gonna lie, you had me at 'yeah'."

"Brilliant! Is it chill if I email you with all the details and shit at some point later?"

"Yeah of course. Thanks for thinking of me man."

"Of course, Ham. It's obviously just a thing, right? You and Johns?"

"Hilarious."

"I know, I'm brilliant. Anyway, text me your email and I'll let you know everything."

"Great. Talk to you soon mate."

"Yeah, thanks again."

At lunch, John arrived with two carrier bags of fresh ingredients. 

"Hey babe," he greeted, kissing Alex on the cheek as he hurried past and placed the bags on the kitchen counter. 

"Hey, what's all this?"

"You said Martha is out of town until this evening, so I thought that she might appreciate a proper meal when she got back, without having to have someone wait around to cook. Then I thought George would probably want something at whatever time he gets back tonight, so I basically bought the makings of a load of spaghetti bolognese."

"You're cooking?"

"Yeah, I'm cooking. I hope that's cool, but I'm living here now so I feel like I should do something."

"Of course that's cool, it's incredible. George and Martha will really appreciate it." 

"Brilliant. I also brought down a couple of BLTs from the mess for lunch."

"I love you," said Alex, taking the sandwich from John, "oh, and John I guess you're alright too." 

"You're a dick."

"I'm sorry J, but if you were expecting me to love you more than I love sandwiches, well you were very much mistaken."

John rolled his eyes and laughed. 

"Remind me why I'm dating you again?"

"Because I'm really fucking hot," replied Alex with a wink. "Oh! I've got news. You know how I told you that Aaron mentioned a possible job?"

John nodded and took a bite of his sandwich. 

"Yeah, well, I got a call from André this morning and I have a job! It sounds so cool, J. It's a weekly column and I can write basically whatever I want so long as the majority of the focus is on LGBT+ rights, and as you well know, I'm really gay so I'm happy about that!"

"I'm proud of you, Alexander. And yes, there is no question of your attraction to guys. I mean, you'd have to be a really good actor if you weren't."

"Nah, I really am this attracted to you. Deal with it."

"Mm, I think I more than deal with it, Alexander. I love you."

"I love you too. Like, a lot. It's sort of ridiculous really."

Alex reached over and took John's hand, leaving them each with only one hand to hold their sandwich. He stubbornly continued to hold John's hand as they realised just how difficult eating a BLT one handed is. 

"Alexander, you could just let go and then this would be much easier."

"I'm being romantic, John, a good boyfriend."

"Surely a good boyfriend would avoid making things difficult for his gorgeous boyfriend."

"Oh, right. Yeah, sorry." Alex drew his hand away as though he had been burnt. He focused his eyes on the sandwich, meaning he missed the flash of guilt that crosses John's face.

"Alex I-"

"No, you're right. It's easier." He said sharply. 

"Hey, don't snap at me. I didn't say anything offensive," returned John, equally as curt. 

They sat in silence for the rest of the meal. When John finished his sandwich, he stood up and threw away the wrapper. 

"I shouldn't have snapped."

"No, you shouldn't have."

"Now you're doing it! What do you want me to say, J?"

"I want you to just trust that I love you for fuck's sake! I asked you to let go of my hand because I wanted to eat my damn sandwich, not because I didn't want you to hold it."

"I've never done this before, John, okay? I don't know the boundaries. This has all happened really fast and I'm trying to keep up but it's difficult! I'm just generally a self conscious person, and it gets really difficult when there's another person in the picture!" 

"So I'm just another person making your life more difficult? Huh?"

"No! J, come on your twisting my words on purpose. You know I didn't mean that!"

"What did you mean then, Alex? Because I'm struggling to understand. Are we moving too fast for you, is that it? Is that why I'm making your life such a challenge?"

"Jesus Christ how did we get to this? Why are we arguing?"

"You brought up the fact that we've been moving fast. Why would you if it wasn't an issue? Why would you ask me to move in for fuck's sake? Was it out of pity? Huh? Because I got shot trying to save you?"

"Of course it's not pity, John! It's because I need you with me. You got shot, John, and I thought I'd never see you again. I need you with me."

"It's because I was with you that I got shot!"

John knew he'd gone too far. The look on Alex's face was too much. Before, they had both just looked angry, they'd been shouting at each other and it had sucked, but Alex looked like he'd just been punched in the gut. He looked down at the ground and John could see that he was working hard to keep his breathing even. 

"You think I don't know that?" Asked Alex quietly. It was worse than the yelling. "You think that I don't know you almost died because of me? You think I don't think about that all the time? That I don't feel so guilty every time I look at that scar? And then even more guilty for feeling guilty when you were sure it wasn't my fault? Or at least you claimed you were. Go to hell, John." Alex didn't raise his voice or look John in the eye as he spoke. 

Alex moved towards the door and John felt the tears start to fall. He reached out and grabbed Alex's arm. 

"Don't go," he choked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol I'm sorry. I missed the update yesterday and then I come back with a n g s t


	56. Chapter 56

"Don't go," repeated John, begging Alex with wide, teary eyes. 

Alex stared back at John. He had tears in his eyes too. 

"Please, Alexander."

"John, I-I'm sorry, but I need to clear my head."

"No, Alexander. Please. We haven't argues since getting together. We can't start a habit of yelling and then not talking it out, please."

"You started it John."

"For fuck's sake I-" he stopped himself and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I love you."

"I love you too, but-"

"No, please. Don't you dare add a 'but' to that statement. You love me. Whatever the hell this is doesn't change that, right? Please, just stay."

Neither man spoke for a minute. John was breathing heavily and still holding on to Alex's arm, as though he were an anchor stopping a kite from flying away. 

Alex stared at John, looking completely torn. The longer he looked at John, the more he could feel his resolve falling apart. He closed his eyes before surging forwards and wrapping his arms around John's waist. 

"I'm sorry, J. I love you."

"Oh thank God." John breathed as he wrapped his own arms tightly around Alex. "So that was our first argument."

"Yeah, lets never do that again." 

"So we're good?"

"Yeah. We're good, J. Just, I've never dated anyone before. Ever. And I've kind of thrown myself in at the deep end. Most of the time it's fine but occasionally something happens and I feel like I'm slipping under water. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I know you love me, and I love you, no exceptions."

"Good. I'm sorry for having a go. I forget that you're four years younger than me sometimes. And you have such a busy life. I've had the opportunity to get the experience, it's unfair of me to get annoyed when you're self conscious about something in our relationship." 

"It's alright now though. Everything's fine, everything's cool. We have to argue sometimes if we want to figure out how to move forwards together, right?"

"Right."

"I've never really thought much of the fact that your that much older than me before."

"It's not that much of a difference."

"No, I know that. I like it. I feel safer with you because you're more experienced than me. Especially when it comes to sex. Like, I honestly would have had no idea what I was doing if it weren't for you." 

"Shit, I was your first? You didn't tell me that."

"Firstly, no. You were my first guy. I did it a couple of times with girls but soon worked out that it really wasn't for me. Secondly, does it matter?"

"Firstly, fairs. And secondly, no I guess not. I'm glad you and I got to have a first time and I suppose that's all that matters."

"Exactly."

"I'm surprised though. I mean, the first time, sure, I fucked you so I guess you couldn't really tell. But the second time, you fucked me, and damn you were good at it. I just assumed you must have done it before."

"Nah, I'm just a fast learner. And I had a great teacher." Alex was talking quietly in John's ear and could feel the older man's heart beating faster. He shifted his stance slightly and discovered that John was significantly turned on; the man moaned quietly as Alex's leg brushed over his crotch. "How much time do you have left before you need to get back?" He asked, stepping away and looking John in the eye. 

"Enough," replied John. His eyes were dark and he licked his lips in anticipation as he looked Alex up and down. 

"Great." 

Maybe Alex made sure that John was slightly late back to his desk, but John made sure Alex couldn't really walk, so they reckoned they were pretty much even. 

That evening, John returned and started on dinner. Martha and George both arrived a little after eight and were pleasantly surprised to learn they were having a meal cooked for them. 

"You're back early tonight, George. We thought we might have to leave you a portion in the fridge," Alex commented when they sat down to eat. 

"Nothing has happened all day. I didn't see the point in making the staff stay late and once they leave, I leave. I'll be called back if anything happens though, don't you worry."

"Fair enough. This is delicious by the way, thanks J."

"Yes, it's fabulous. You'll have to show me the recipe some time," added Martha. 

John grinned at her and nodded. 

"It was my mother's recipe. She'd have been glad to know that y'all enjoyed it. Woah, sorry. Talking about back home brings out the accent I guess."

"I'll be honoured to carry on her legacy with my cooking, dear." 

John hadn't thought his smile could get any wider, but he was wrong. He positively beamed at Martha and then at Alex when he reached over and squeezed his thigh. It was wonderful; he was part of a family again after the longest time.


	57. Chapter 57

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And Peggy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ATTENTION: I know that gay marriage was legalised across the US in 2015 BUT in this verse I have decided that said Supreme Court ruling is yet to come.

Alex took his first column pretty much straight from one of the essays on LGBT+ rights that he had once thought he could never publish. Of course, he altered the tone of it so that it read like a newspaper article. It outlined his stance on gay marriage - that it should be legal across the fifty states - and went on to explain why such weddings wouldn't destroy the sanctity of marriage. Along with it, he sent a list of possible column topics stemming from this one, such as why the bible is not an effective argument against gay marriage and why there is such a necessity for the legalisation anyway. André's older brother Chris was exceptionally pleased with what Alex sent him, and assured him that it would appear in the next week's edition under the name 'A P Hawkins'. He was also happy that the work didn't require editing, unlike the majority of the pieces he received. 

The day that the column was published, John took Alex on a date to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History to celebrate. There were a few members of the secret service in casual clothing dotted around the building, but other than that they were like any other couple on a date. They were free and in love and it was brilliant. 

"I'm really proud of you, you know?" Said John as they sat down on a bench. 

"It was a case of knowing the right guy really, but thank you."

"Firstly, knowing people only gets you so far; they wouldn't have hired you if they hated your writing. Secondly, I'm also just proud in general of how far you've come in the relatively short time I've known you."

"You're so cheesy."

"You love it."

"Mm," Alex hummed in agreement. He then planted a kiss on John's cheek and said "I do." 

"Excuse me?" Came a female voice from behind them. 

Both men turned to see a young woman, roughly Alex's height wearing a yellow dress. 

"Hi, I'm sorry to bother you two on your date, but it's Alex and John, right?" 

As she spoke, Alex swore he recognised her but couldn't pinpoint where from. He was still trying to figure it out a couple seconds after she asked the question, so John had to answer affirmatively for them. 

"Oh good! I'm Peggy. Peggy Schuyler."

Alex swung his legs over the bench and stood in front of her. John followed suit.

"The third Schuyler sister?" Asked Alex, suddenly remembering seeing a picture of her on Angelica's desk. 

"The very same. It's so good to finally meet you, I've heard so much from Angelica and Eliza, but I've been away at college and haven't had the chance to see you in person."

"I thought I recognised you. Ang has a picture of the three of you in her desk. It's really good to meet you too," replied Alex genuinely. 

John nodded his agreement and held his hand out for her to shake. She accepted the hand and grinned at him as she shook it. 

"I must say, my sisters were right in saying how adorable you are together. I didn't realise quite how short you are in comparison," she commented, eyes fixed on Alex for the latter statement. 

"Good to see that you didn't miss out on the Schuyler charm. Angelica loves to tease me about my height." 

"We Schuylers are legendary and were inseparable throughout our childhood, of course I didn't. I wasn't teasing you though, merely observing."

"She's right babe, you can't deny the facts," chuckled John before proving his point by kissing Alex on the forehead. 

"Moving on! I didn't realise you were coming back to DC. I'm surprised Angelica didn't introduce you to me."

"Actually, my sisters don't know that I'm back. It's a surprise. They're not expecting me until next week."

"Brilliant. I love surprises."

"Me too. I'm not sure when I'll be able to catch them though. Eliza is easy enough but Angelica's working hours are far from conventional."

"That is very true. Well we were just about done, right J? Yeah, so we're going to be heading back to the White House. If I get Joe - security detail - to make a couple calls, you could come back with us? I think Eliza is there too, meeting Maria before they go out to dinner."

"Perfect! It's funny how things work out."

Alex regretted his offer as soon as Eliza and Angelica saw Peggy. His ears had never suffered so much. He and John had been planning on staying and chatting for a bit, but after the screaming and the hugging and the fast-paced talking, they made the decision to duck out unnoticed and head back to the residence. 

That night Alex fell asleep feeling content. He was published in the newspaper, had gone on a great date with his boyfriend, who was wrapped around him in a cuddle, and he had now met all three Schuyler sisters. Everything was complete.


	58. Chapter 58

"I've been asked to speak at a high school on Thursday," began Alex, excitedly, "they want me to discuss LGBT+ issues."

"That's great! This is the kind of stuff you've always wanted to do, right?" Replied John.

"At this age, yeah. I'm gonna work in the White House when I'm older, but for now this is excellent."

"What are you planning on saying?"

"Well, I thought I might do a little introduction about the oppression of the LGBT+ community, hard-hitting stuff, you know? Then talk about my own experiences and introduce some opinions, and then start an open discussion-type thing."

"When did you find out you're doing it?"

"Ten minutes ago?"

"And you've already thought of all that? You amaze me, Alexander. You never hesitate."

"Laurens, you're making me blush. I'm really excited. I never thought I'd be able to speak about all of this so openly."

"I know, I know. And I'm so proud of you. Everyone is. I've really got to go now though. I'll see you later." 

"Okay, bye, love you."

"Love you too."

Alex put the phone down as John ended the call. He walked into his room and opened the top drawer of his desk. When he saw the dark green, leather-bound journal that sat in there, he smiled as he remembered the events of his birthday. Alex picked up the journal, sat at his desk, took the fountain pen out of the draw, and opened the journal. 

The following hour was spent outlining Alex's plan for the talk. It was a really beautiful pen to write with and he got great satisfaction from watching the ink flow onto the thick pages. It definitely felt right, to him: the first thing written in the journal John had given him on the day they first kissed was about LGBT+ issues. 

At six o'clock, one and a half episodes of The West Wing after Alex has finished outlining the talk, John entered the residence. He walked into the lounge and flopped onto the sofa, half on top of Alex, wordlessly. Alex's hand automatically went to John's head and he spent a few moments just running his fingers through the older man's hair before speaking. 

"Are you okay?"

"My Dad called me."

Alex stayed quiet and waited for John to continue.

"It's the first time I've heard from him in ages. Since before the shooting. How fucked up is that? He didn't even send a message to check on his own son, after said son got shot. He didn't even ask how I am. Didn't mention the fact that he refused to come and visit me in the hospital with Martha. He said that he hasn't called because he's been dealing with the news. Now, silly old me thought for a second that he had been too upset to learn that I got hurt. That he didn't call because it was some sort of coping mechanism. But he didn't mean that news. He meant you introducing me to the world as your boyfriend on CNN. He hasn't called because he's disgusted by the fact that I still haven't given up this 'lifestyle'. He only called today to ask me not to do that 'sort of thing' - by which he means kissing a guy in public - again because it's tarnishing the family name. It's funny how he disowned me seven years ago, yet when it comes to his reputation, little Jack still has to do whatever daddy says." He was breathing heavily. 

Alex has expected tears, but really John just sounded bitter. He removed his hand from John's hair and opened his arms as best as he could lying on the sofa. 

"Come here." He instructed when John looked back at him with an eyebrow raised. 

The taller man sighed but gave a grateful smile and moved to hug Alex properly. 

"I'm sorry that your father is such an asshole. And I know that he's your father and it's complicated and you still feel like you need validation from him, but you have a whole family here in DC. You've got George and Martha, Angelica, Eliza, Maria, Lafayette, and Peggy now probably. Most of all, you've got me. I'm right here, and I love you for who you are. I'm not going anywhere."

John lifted his head from where it was resting on Alex's shoulder and pressed his lips so Alex's, kissing the man slowly. Alex kisses back but let John stay in control, feeling as though his boyfriend needed it at that moment. 

After a minute or so, John pulled away and leant his forehead on Alex's, eyes still closed. 

"Screw my father. He disowned me. He doesn't get to dictate my life anymore. Tomorrow, we are going to go and make out in front of the White House for no reason other than to piss him off."

Alex hummed his agreement. 

"Anything that involves pissing off your father, or making out, I'm down for." 

"Good."

The next night they were on CNN once more, this time actually making out. When John's phone rang and 'Dad' appeared on the caller ID, John answered the call, said 'fuck you', and ended the call.


	59. Chapter 59

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NONE OF YOU ARE READY FOR THIS I APOLOGISE NOW! VICTORIA, DON'T READ THIS IN THE PARKING LOT, OKAY?

Alex’s talk was in a huge gymnasium filled with hundreds of students. He had the journal John had given him in his hands and he was speaking about what he loved. After around fifteen minutes, he opened the talk to questions and discussion. There were a few people who put forward arguments against gay marriage, but Alex was pleased to find that other students opposed their points eloquently and persuasively. At first, it was only girls who were asking him questions or putting forward opinions, but after a few different points were discussed, one of the Senior boys wearing a varsity jacket put his hand up. From then on the rest of his team mates became involved in the discussion, and as the jocks started, the rest followed.

After around half an hour of open discussion, they took a break. Alex ducked out of the gymnasium to go to the toilet. The journal was tucked carefully under his arm. He felt a little bit ridiculous, but the idea of leaving it anywhere made him feel highly uncomfortable.

Whilst he was washing his hands, Alex heard a muffled bang from behind him. He turned to see that the frosted window of the bathroom had been blown out. He dived into a cubicle and locked the door.

From outside he heard a pair of feet hit the ground, and a gun being cocked. He reached into his pocket and realised that while he wouldn’t leave the journal, he had in fact left his phone somewhere. He swore under his breath and opened the journal. He lifted the fountain pen from his inside pocket and began to write. Through a small gap between the door and the rest of the cubicle, Alex could see what the intruder looked like. He quickly began to jot down what was happening, along with a description of the man – white, 6ft, blonde hair, twenties – and anything his mind thought was relevant.

“Mr Hamilton?” called the man, quietly.

Alex shifted on his feet and noted the accent down in the journal. He then flipped the page, heart hammering in his chest and began to write a note to George and Martha. He essentially thanked them for everything and assured them that none of this was their fault. He told them he loved them. He signed off the note and flipped the page again. He began another note, this time for John.

“I know you’re in here, Alexander.” Alex shivered as the name usually only used by John was called, slightly louder.

_Dearest Laurens, Cold in my professions, warm in my friendships, I wish, my Dear Laurens, it might be in my power, by words rather than actions, to convince you that I love you. But alas, it seems that this may be the last chance I get, so words will have to suffice. I love you, J, so much._

“Mr Hamilton, I have to warn you, that if you don’t give yourself up, myself and five others will burst into that gym and kill as many people as we can. And it will be all your fault.”

Alex flipped back to the notes page and wrote down ‘six men’ before replying.

“I’ll be out in just a minute, and I will go with you gladly.” He couldn’t let them kill anyone.

_I think it’s decidedly unfair, John, that we have had so little time with each other. But it’s been the best time, hasn’t it? I have to go now, J. I’m sorry if I’m leaving you for the last time. I’m sorry that we argued this morning. I’m sorry I didn’t kiss you goodbye._

_Forever yours,_

_A. Ham._

He placed the journal and pen together on top of the cistern, took a deep breath, and unlocked the door.

“Hands up when you step out.” Alex felt tears start to prick his eyes as he pulled the door open and stepped out, hands above his head.

“Mr Hamilton? Are you alright in there?” came the voice of Joe from outside.

The man in front of him made a throat-slitting motion and shook his head slowly. Alex understood the message.

“Yeah, Joe. I’m fine. I’ll be out in a minute.” He blinked a few times, willing the tears not to fall.

The man took hold of Alex’s right wrist and twisted him to that he could tie his hands behind his back.

“I am going to lift you out of this window, and someone will catch you the other side. No noise, no funny business, and no one gets hurt. Yet. You understand?”

Alex nodded.

“Great, here we go.”

Alex was roughly man-handled out of the window, across a small yard and into the back of a van. A gag was tied viciously around his mouth and the door was closed, leaving him on his back, his head thumping, tears rolling down his face, unable to speak or move properly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry lol


	60. Chapter 60

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> George rants at God at the end. This might offend some people, just as a warning.

Joe looked at his watch for the third time since Alex had gone into the toilet. He’d been ten minutes, and it had been four minutes since he had heard him.

“Mr Hamilton?” he called, warily.

There was no reply.

“I’m coming in.”

When Joe entered the bathroom to find the window open and Hamilton gone, he cursed the President for ordering them to give Hamilton as much freedom as possible. He kicked open the doors to the stalls to be sure, and when he caught sight of the abandoned journal above the cistern, he swore and ripped the radio from his belt.

“BOOKBAG IS GONE. I REPEAT, BOOKBAG IS GONE. I NEED BACKUP IN THE BATHROOM NEAREST TO THE GYMNASIUM. THE WINDOW HAS BEEN BLASTED OUT AND BOOKBAG’S JOURNAL IS IN HERE,” he yelled into it before lifting himself up and onto the window ledge. He looked around, trying to spot any clues as to what had happened. He looked down to the ground directly below the window and found that there were multiple sets of footprints there, one of which indicated that the person who had left them was being dragged. “THIS IS AN ABDUCTION. BOOKBAG HAS BEEN TAKEN.”

A few seconds later several armed men burst into the bathroom. Joe jumped down from the window and stepped aside as all but one of them climbed out of it, purposely avoiding the ground below after Joe pointed out the evidence. One man stayed at the window, attempting to gage all he could from what he found there, whilst the others rushed out to try to find out where they had taken Alex. The one who had stayed in the bathroom turned to Joe.

“You said there was a journal?” Joe nodded and pointed to the stall. The agent pulled open the stall and picked up the journal.

“He’s written us a description of one of the men. There are six of them, apparently. Smart kid.”

“Smartest kid I’ve ever met. He’s lucky he had this with him. He’s decidedly unlucky that he left his phone back in the gym.”

“Why would he take the journal but leave his phone?”

“Gift from his boyfriend.”

“Right, yes. Do you think there could be a connection there?”

“Between Austin and this? Same group?”

“Potentially, he was here to talk about LGBT+ rights, he was the target of the gunman because he’s gay. Some people are highly angry with the fact that the First Son of The United States isn’t straight.”

“Land of the free my ass. He’s a good kid, Nick.”

“We’ll find him. And the shits that have taken him.”

“Has the President been informed?”

“No, not yet.”

“I’ll go. Now. I want to deliver the news in person. Then I’ll tell John. Make sure no one gets hold of this. Don’t let anyone leave this building.” Joe moved towards the door.

“Hold up! He’s written a letter to the President and First Lady, oh. And to the boyfriend. You should take this, I’ll take a photo of the evidence.”

Joe waited for a few seconds and then took the journal.

Hercules knocked on the door to the Oval Office and walked straight in.

“Sir? Could you accompany me to the residence please? The First Lady is on her way there. It’s about Alexander.”

“Is he okay?”

“Sir, if you’d just follow me-”

“Is my son okay, Hercules?”

“I’m sorry sir, I don’t know.” George nodded, stood, and followed Hercules to the residence.

When they reached his study and Joe was in there, he felt his palms start to sweat.

“Sit down and tell me about my son.”

Joe sat and nodded solemnly.

“Mr President, I’m sorry to have to tell you this. Mr Hamilton was taken from the bathroom of the school he was talking at today.”

George’s entire world fell apart and he sat down next to Martha, taking her hand immediately.

“What?”

“I’m sorry sir, Alexander has been taken. He left a description of the man who took him in this journal, as well as a number of other useful things. He’s smart, this is really going to help us to get him back as quickly as possible. We already have men looking at cctv footage and some looking for evidence such as tyre tracks that could tell us exactly what we are looking for.”

George could feel that he wasn’t going to be able to hold it together for much longer.

“I need to be left alone. Keep me updated. I swear, if any harm comes to my boy, there will be consequences.”

“Yes sir. I will go and inform Mr Laurens.”

George hadn’t thought about John.

“My poor boys. Please, go. You too, Hercules.”

Hercules was standing at the door, shell-shocked by what he had just heard. Alex was his friend. He nodded nonetheless and walked out of the room, Joe trailing behind.

“A word of warning, John my punch the messenger, hard.”

“Right, thank you.”

When the door closed, George began to cry. Silent but angry sobs racked his body. Martha tried to console him but she, too, was crying. It took ten minutes before George was able to speak again.

“I need to be in a church,” George stated. “Now. Hercules?!”

The door burst open and Hercules rushed in.

“Yes sir?”

“Church. Now.”

“Yes sir.”

George made everyone stay outside, despite a lot of protest from the secret service, whilst he ‘spoke to God’.

“He finally came out, and you shoot his boyfriend for it and get him kidnapped when he’s giving a talk on LGBT rights? Was that supposed to be funny? You can’t conceive, nor can I, the appalling strangeness of the mercy of God, says Graham Green. I don’t know who’s ass he was kissing there, because I think you’re just vindictive. What was John Laurens? A warning shot? That was my son. What did I ever do to yours, but praise his glory and praise his name? Gratias tibi ago, domine. Have I displeased you, you feckless thug? 3.8 million new jobs? That wasn’t good? Bailed out Mexico, increased foreign trade, 30 million new acres for conservation. That’s not enough to buy us out of the doghouse? Haec credam a deo pio? A deo iusto? A deo scito? Cruciatus in crucem. Cruciatus in crucem. Eas in crucem!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Latin translations:  
> Gratias tibi ago, domine. - Thank you, Lord.  
> Haec credam a deo pio? A deo iusto? A deo scito? - Am I to believe these things from a righteous God? A just God? A wise God?   
> Cruciatus in crucem. Cruciatus in crucem. Eas in crucem! - To hell with your punishments. To hell with your punishments. And to hell with you.


	61. Chapter 61

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> S h o r t but a n g s t y

John was at his desk when his phone rang. 

"Hello?"

"John?"

"Hercules?"

"Yeah, could you come to the residence asap? Don't ask questions, just come." 

The line went dead before John could reply. 

"Huh." He shrugged and placed the receiver back before heading towards the residence. Hercules had sounded quite urgent, but if something had happened to Alex, someone would have called his cell. Maybe George or Martha needed him. That would make sense considering that Hercules was George's aide. Upon reaching that conclusion, he decided that he should probably quicken his pace; practically his son-in-law or not, he didn't want to keep the President waiting. 

When he arrived at the residence to find that George and Martha weren't there, but Joe was, he started to feel slightly anxious. Maybe something had happened to one of them. But wait, wasn't Joe supposed to be on Alex's security detail. John didn't think they were supposed to be back yet. The slight feeling of anxiety settled in his stomach. 

"Afternoon Mr Laurens."

The tone was too solemn. John began to feel on edge.

"Hello Joe. Where's Alex? Weren't you with him today?"

"Mr Laurens, I think you should take a seat."

Forget on edge, John was standing on the edge of a cliff. He sat. His hands gripped the arms of the chair he had fallen into. 

"Joe? Where's Alex? Weren't you with him today?" He repeated, slower and more pointedly. 

"I'm incredibly sorry to tell you this, but-"

Those words sent John's mind into a frenzy. He didn't hear the second half of the sentence because all he could hear was a voice in his head repeatedly saying 'shit'. He watched as Joe's mouth stopped moving. He stared at John with an eyebrow raised in concern.

"Sir, are you okay?"

"I'm sorry, Joe. Could you repeat that?"

Please don't let Alexander be dead. Please don't let Alexander be dead. Please don't- 

"Mr Hamilton was taken today from a bathroom in the school he was speaking at."

"Taken?" John couldn't breathe properly and his heart was hammering in his chest. It hurt. "What do you mean taken?" His voice faltered on the word 'taken' but he ignored it and kept his gaze steady. 

"He was kidnapped."

"NO!" It took about thirty seconds before John realised that the person screaming was him. When he did realise, the scream fell into sobbing. 

After a minute or so of sobbing, he became vaguely aware of the door opening and someone walking into the room. He couldn't hear anything over the ringing in his ears or see past the tears in his eyes. He felt the presence of whoever it was standing in front of him, and when they pulled him up he lashed out. He didn't want a hug from anyone; he wanted Alex. He bashed his fists repeatedly against the chest of the person holding him. As he did so, the relief of energy caused the sobbing and eventually the ringing in his ears to stop. Now he could hear them.

"It's okay, son. I've got you." 

It was George. It took another few seconds to kick his brain into gear for him to make the connection. He was hitting George. He was hitting the father of his boyfriend and the President of the United States. He abruptly stopped and looked up scared. 

"I'm so sorry, I-"

George didn't let him finish. He simply shushed him and pulled him into a hug. John collapsed into him, exhausted, and his body began to rack again in silent, smaller sobs. 

"Son?" spoke the President after a few minutes. 

John took a few deep breaths and stepped back to look George in the eye.

"The secret service have done all they can in their immediate investigation so we need to make an announcement before they can let anyone leave that school. I will make a televised announcement to the press corps in ten minutes. I would like you and Martha to stand with me. Are you up to that?"

" I won't have to say anything, will I? I don't think I can-"

"No. You won't need to say anything, but if the bastards who have our boy watch the announcement, which they undoubtedly will, you can bet Alex will see it to. If I were him, I think I'd want to see the three people I care about most standing up to tell those assholes that they don't know what they've gotten themselves into."

"Okay. I'll stand with you."


	62. Chapter 62

John tried to keep it together during the broadcast announcement. The President stood behind the podium in the press room and addressed both the press corps and the nation. Martha and John stood a couple of yards back, on either side of him. They made it basically the whole way through before anyone cracked. George's voice faltered on the word 'son' towards the end and that set John off. He felt the tears build in his eyes and looked up slightly in an attempt to stop them but it wasn't enough. They began to fall freely down his cheeks, but he still continued to stare at the camera. 

When the lights above the camera turned green, indicating that it was no longer hot, John immediately turned away and put his face in his hands. He felt sick. 

Joe escorted him straight back to the residence. John walked straight past the kitchen, ignoring his phone on the side that was undoubtedly filling with messages, and opened the door to Alex's bedroom. For the first time, he wished that the room with its countless books and pieces of paper and slight smell of coffee didn't scream Alex at him. 

He took one look at the bed, fell into Alex's side and sobbed into the pillow. 

"John?" Came Martha's voice from the doorway a few minutes later. 

He sat up and looked at her with red eyes and tearstained cheeks. 

"Do you mind if I sit?"

He shook his head, not trusting his voice. Martha moved from the doorway and sat next to him on the bed. It was only as she did so that he realised what she had in her hands. 

"Alex's journal," he breathed, more of a statement than a question. 

"He had it with him today. He, uh, he wouldn't leave it, even for a second, apparently. That's why we have it now, because he took it with him to the bathroom. He left it in there when he got taken with clues as to who the assailant might be. He wrote a couple of letters in here too. The first to George and myself. The second is for you. Here." She handed over the journal, gave him a squeeze on the shoulder, and left the room. 

John turned the journal thrice in hand, feeling the weight of it and admiring the workmanship as he had the first time he'd seen it, before opening it to the latest page. 

Dearest Laurens,  
Cold in my professions, warm in my friendships, I wish, my Dear Laurens, it might be in my power, by words rather than actions, to convince you that I love you. But alas, it seems that this may be the last chance I get, so words will have to suffice. I love you, J, so much. I think it’s decidedly unfair, John, that we have had so little time with each other. But it’s been the best time, hasn’t it? I have to go now, J. I’m sorry if I’m leaving you for the last time. I’m sorry that we argued this morning. I’m sorry I didn’t kiss you goodbye.   
Forever yours,   
A. Ham.

As he read, he felt his chest tighten. He hasn't even thought about the argument. It had been stupid and meaningless. Alex had asked to wake him up at eight, but John had let him lie in until nine because he hadn't been sleeping too well with the talk coming up. Alex had then gotten defensive, claiming that he didn't need John to babysit him. It had escalated from there and Alex left. This time he didn't stay when John asked him to. Now John couldn't believe that had only been that morning. 

Until reading the letter, he hasn't dared to think that he may never see his Alexander again. Having read it, he realised that the last words he may ever say to his boyfriend would be 'well fuck you then'.

It was decidedly unfair, as Alex had put it. What had they done to anyone to deserve this? One of them getting shot and the other getting kidnapped. 

As he was pondering, he heard someone walking towards the room. He looked to the doorway to see Lafayette looking more forlorn than he had ever seen him. 

"Mon ami, I am so sorry. This is awful." 

John stood and pulled Lafayette into a hug.

"No need to apologise Laf. It's not your fault. And if anyone deserves pity, you're up here with me. You've known him for far longer than I have. He's your best friend too."

"Still. I was so worried for you, you haven't been answering your phone. I was on my lunch break when I saw the announcement. You were so courageous, standing there next to the President. It was horrible though. My world went, uh how you say... fuzzy? Non, hazy. It went hazy for a bit." He stepped back from the hug. "How are you?"

"I've barely stopped crying for more than ten minutes at a time. I didn't know one person could cry so much."

"He will be okay, John, I know it. We'll have him back in no time."

John only smiled sadly at his friend, wishing he shared his optimism. 

"I should probably answer some people on my phone. My sister will be worried and she doesn't have the option of barging in here to check I am okay."

"Yes. People are worried. Where is you phone? I will get it."

When Lafayette returned with the phone, John swore at the multitude of missed calls and messages. He opened the chat with Martha first.

14:12  
MarthaL: Oh Jacky, I just saw you on the news. I'm so sorry. Please call me when you get this. 

14:20  
MarthaL: Jack? Are you okay?

14:25  
MarthaL: John, please I'm getting worried. Call me. 

14:37  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Sorry M. I was away from my phone. I can't call you right now, but I'm okay. Well I'm not, but you know. I'll call you later x 

Next was Eliza.

14:09  
ElizaSchuyla: John! This is horrible. I'm so sorry. I hope you're okay xx

14:21  
ElizaSchuyla: John? I know there's a lot going on but could you shoot me a text so I know you're okay? Ang, Maria, Peggy and I are all worried. They send their wishes by the way xx

14:39  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Hi Eliza. Thanks, and thanks to Maria and your sisters. I'll call you soon xx

 

He ignore the messages from Lafayette as he'd already spoken to him and went straight to the one from Angelica. It read 'John, I'm so sorry. Reply to Eliza, she's getting worried x'. He didn't reply as he'd already done so in his message to Eliza. 

There were a few others from people he barely knew so he decided they could wait. Just as he went to put his phone down, it began to ring. He picked it up without looking at caller ID.

"John?" The voice was desperate.

"Yes?"

"Oh thank God, it's Aaron. Aaron Burr? I've just heard about Hamilton. I can't believe it. Im so sorry. I'm sure you don't want to talk to me right now as we barely know each other, but I care about that man more than I care to let on, and I know he'd want me to check on you."

"Thank you Burr. He cares about you too. I'm fine. I'm with Lafayette."

"Okay, that's good. Sorry to bother you." 

"Wasn't a bother, Burr. I hope you're okay too."

"I'm shaken, but I'll be fine. I'll talk to you soon, let me know of any news?"

"Of course."

"Thank you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, everyone is a bit ooc, but Ham's missing so what can you expect?


	63. Chapter 63

27 hours. That's how long Alex had been missing. 

George had tried to fire everyone on the secret service at least five times over. 

Martha was trying hard to keep it together for her husband. He was breaking on the inside and she needed to hold him together. 

Lafayette was at a loss as to what to do. He wanted to help but knew he couldn't. Alex had given them a great start and the top agents in the country were working on finding him. He had wandered towards the West Wing in search of Angelica but instead happened upon Hercules.

"Evening Lafayette."

"Evening Hercules. 

"How are you?"

"Dreadful. I can't even begin to imagine how the President is feeling."

"All I know is that since it happened, I have been fired twelve times."

"Oh. I'm sorry?"

"Nah, he doesn't mean it. I'm more worried about you right now?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. You're actually having a proper conversation with me right now. This never happens."

"Huh. I guess I'm too nervous about Alex to be nervous to talk to you."

"You're normally nervous to talk to me? Why?"

"I find you highly attractive."

"Oh."

"Oui. I may as well be blunt about it."

"Oh. I mean, I'm flattered but-"

"It's fine."

"No, I think you're hot too, it's just that I never have a day off and everything is completely hectic so..."

"Oh. I think maybe I will come and speak to you again when we have Alex back."

"Okay."

Angelica was ready to have a breakdown. She hadn't had time to take a moment to miss her friend because it was her job to update people constantly. She just needed five minutes to cry or scream or punch a pillow, but she barely had thirty seconds between briefings and meetings and questions and she was so tired. 

Eliza had hardly stopped crying. She was a highly emotional person anyway; she formed connections with people and was empathetic. This combined with the fact that Alex would always have a place in her heart made the whole situation difficult for her.

Maria was struggling too. Not only did the care about Alex and John, but she had to deal with comforting a girlfriend who was crying for someone she had once nearly loved. It was a highly complicated situation. 

Aaron hadn't stood still since he put the phone down. He had paced for a few hours, then he had gone for a walk which turned into a run. Then he had paced for a bit longer before heading to the gym then he had spent a solid hour trying to find a coffee shop that was open. He eventually found one, ordered a coffee and then paced as he drank it. There was no one else in there and the barista could see that it would be a mistake to tell him to stop the pacing. He hadn't cried.

John was a mess. He was the complete opposite to Aaron. Once Lafayette had left, he sat on Alex bed and hadn't moved since. He ignored his phone. His friends were trying to contact him but he didn't want to speak to anyone other than Alex. He had read the letter in the journal at least twenty times, and the page was getting water damaged as he cried. He didn't know how long he'd been sitting there (it had been nearly twenty hours), all he knew was that his back hurt, he had a headache and he felt mentally exhausted. 

George returned to the residence early. Too early. He went straight to Alex's room.

"George?" John croaked in confusion. He cleared his throats before speaking again. "Why are you back?"

"I've had to invoke the 25th. My staff and my wife believe I can't currently carry out the duties of the President effectively. I tend to agree with them. John Adams is currently acting President."

"Oh."

"Yes. Until we have my son back, I'm not sure I'm fit for anything. Have you had anything so eat since we heard? Any sleep?"

"Neither sir, George, sorry."

"Okay, we're going to have some cereal and then you're going to get some sleep. Alexander would kill me if he knew I let you carry on like this."

"Okay."

Eating cereal with George wasn't nearly as enjoyable as last time. They were both in worlds of their own and didn't even bother trying with small talk. When they finished, George took their bowls to the sink and sat back down.

"Last time I asked, they said they have a few leads. They're questioning the bastard who shot you. They reckon it's the same group. With Alex's description and various boot prints and such, they say they have a fairly good idea as to what they are looking for. They're doing everything they can."

"That's good."

"They'll find him, John. I know they will."

"Okay."

"You don't believe me?"

"I can't get my hopes up. There are plenty of people who go missing and don't turn up. I thought maybe they'd use him for ransom or something, but they've made no attempt to communicate. If it's the same group, they don't want anything other than for him to suffer. They tried to kill him before. There's no one there to save him this time. Shit, sorry. Absolutely not what anyone wants to hear right now."

"It's alright. You're hurting. Go, get some sleep."

John didn't think he would be able to get to sleep, but it turned out that all the crying had completely exhausted him, because he was out like a light as soon as his head hit the pillow.


	64. Chapter 64

Joe sprinted into the residence.

"MR PRESIDENT?!"

He ran straight into the lounge to find The President and The First Lady in there, both stood up with slightly panicked expressions.

"What is it?"

"They've called."

"Who have?"

"The people who have Mr Hamilton."

Both Washingtons fell back into their seats. George took Martha's hand in his own. 

"He's alive? What do they want?"

"He's alive. They sent a photo. He didn't look good, but he's alive. Sir, we believe he may have been tortured in some way. They want to speak with you, Mr President."

"Okay."

"Okay. Now, if you could come with me to the situation room. Mrs Washington you are welcome to join, but you don't need to."

When he reached the sit room, George felt slightly sick with anticipation. 

"Sir, the call is waiting. When you answer, keep them on the line for as long as possible and we'll try to track the signal."

George picked up the phone. 

"Hello? This is George Washington."

"Hello, Mr President."

"You have my son?"

"Yes."

"Why did you take him? What do you want?"

"Well, Mr President, we are a group of concerned citizens. We are worried that your son's homosexuality is corrupting the younger generation. He and his... friend... are all over the news and it's wrong. Therefore, we would like to request firstly that Mr Laurens is removed from the White House. Secondly, we would like you to swear to enter your son into conversion therapy. He can be fixed. We understand that there is a lot of talk about a plan to legalise gay marriage across the Nation. We want you veto this. Lastly, we obviously need to remain free citizens, so we must have your word that the manhunt for us does not continue, and we wish for our colleague to be released from prison. He was the man who shot John Laurens. If you do not agree to these terms, we will kill your son."

"Well, as I'm sure you can understand, I'm going to need proof that my son is alive before I can agree to anything."

"We can put him on the line."

"Yes." He put turned to Joe and mouthed 'get John'.

"Hello?" 

George nearly cried. Alex sounded so weak and tired. 

"Son? It's George."

Alex started crying. 

"George? Oh thank God. It's so good to hear your voice. I'm so scared. Is J there?"

"I'm getting him. Don't worry, son. We'll get you out of there."

"George you can't agree to any of their demands. It's not worth it."

"I know, son. I won't. Could you give the phone back? I'll talk to you again in a second."

George waited for the few seconds it took for the phone to be handed over. He turned to the door to see John entering, tears staining his cheeks.

"Mr President?"

"Yes. I have one further request before we talk about your terms. If Mr Laurens is going to have to leave, and my son must be fixed, I ask that you allow them one last conversation."

"Okay."

John rushed over to the phone. George handed it over. 

"Alexander?"

"J? Oh my god. I love you."

"I love you too. So much, oh my God, I miss you so much. I'm so sorry about the argument."

"Oh J, it's all forgiven. I'm just so glad I got to talk to you again. I adore you. Okay, I have to give the phone back. I love you."

"I love you too." John heard the phone being passed over. He handed it back to George and started sobbing. It hurt so much to be able to speak to Alex but not know if he was okay. 

George looked up at Joe who mouthed 'five more minutes'. He nodded and kept talking. When Joe held a thumbs up, George told the man on the phone that he would have to be reinstated as President before he could do anything. It was agreed that the conversation would continue the next morning.

"We got it?"

"We did. Thankfully, homophobes are so incredibly ignorant, that they didn't have any protections on their signal and they didn't realise what we were doing." 

"So we know where he is?" Asked John from the side of the room where Hercules was trying to comfort him.

"Yes. If they're as stupid as we think they are, Mr Hamilton will be back by the end of the day."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was short and pretty awful, I'm sorry. Also, I know it's all pretty unrealistic but I couldn't be bothered to drag out the kidnapping so that it was realistic. Let's face it, homophobic groups who think LGBT+ people need to be fixed and think they're doing the world a favour, are fucking idiots and could make a bunch of rookie mistakes. Also, everyone seems highly stressed by this story line so let's it over with...... you hope.


	65. Chapter 65

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this is pretty much just the last chapter from Alex's point of view, so no new stuff, sorry. Also, please read the note at the end.

Alex couldn’t see. He’d been blindfolded and gagged. The air in the room was stale and the rough surface of bare bricks was digging painfully into his back. The floor was cold and damp. He supposed it must have been roughly a day since he was taken, but he couldn’t be sure. He lost a hold of time fairly quickly. The man who had been in the toilet was speaking to someone on the phone. Alex hoped it was George. They had asked to speak to him in their previous call. The man paused for a few seconds. Then:

“Hello, Mr President.”

Alex gasped, or at least he tried to.

“Yes.”

Alex could only hear one side of the conversation, but he could picture George sitting in the situation room, surrounded by people doing their best to find him.

“Well, Mr President, we are a group of concerned citizens.”

Alex scoffed, again as best as he could considering he was gagged.

“We are worried that your son’s homosexuality is corrupting the younger generation. He and his… friend”

 _HE’S MY BOYFRIEND YOU DICK_ screamed a voice in Alex’s mind.

“… are all over the news and it’s wrong. Therefore, we would like to request firstly that Mr Laurens is removed from the White House. Secondly, we would like you to swear to enter your son into conversion therapy.”

 _Like hell he will_.

“He can be fixed.”

_I’m not broken._

“We understand that there is a lot of talk about a plan to legalise gay marriage across the Nation. We want you to veto this. Lastly, we obviously need to remain free citizens, so we must have your word that the manhunt for us does not continue, and we wish for our colleague to be released from prison. He was the man who shot John Laurens.”

Alex felt a whole new surge of anger towards these people.

“If you do not agree to these terms, we will kill your son.”

Alex only prayed that the phone call was being tracked, or that they had really strong leads, because he wasn’t sure how long George could deny them.

“We can put him on the line.”

Someone grabbed Alex by the shoulder and pulled him to his feet. He nearly fell. Then they removed the gag and held the phone to his ear. He took it from them.

“Hello?”

“Son? It’s George.”

Alex started to cry.

“George? Oh thank God. It’s so good to hear your voice. I’m so scared. Is J there?”

“I’m getting him. Don’t worry son, we’ll get you out of there.”

Alex smiled despite himself. The prospect of speaking to John, even if it was just one last time, was euphoric. Still, he had to ensure that George wasn’t going to do anything stupid.

“George, you can’t agree to any of their demands. It’s not worth it.” Alex could hear that George didn’t believe it wasn’t worth it, but he agreed nonetheless.

“I know son, I won’t. Could you give the phone back? I’ll talk to you again in a second.”

Alex frowned and handed the phone back in confusion. He thought that George would put John on the line. He strained to hear what was being said, but he could only hear the answers in the room.

“Mr President?” A pause. “Okay.”

The phone was given back to Alex.

“Alexander?”

Alex started to cry again.

“J? Oh my god. I love you.”

“I love you too. So much, oh my God, I miss you so much. I’m so sorry about the argument.”

Alex let out a mirthless laugh. As if that mattered now.

“Oh J, it’s all forgiven. I’m just so glad I got to talk to you again. I adore you. Okay, I have to give the phone back. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

As Alex let go of the phone, allowing the man who had been trying to take it to have it, he heard John let out a huge sob. It broke his heart.

The phone call went on for another five minutes, and from what Alex could tell, the questions George was asking weren’t even remotely relevant. He couldn’t believe that the idiots couldn’t tell that they were being held on the line. Someone was obviously trying to establish the location of the call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so firstly, I'm sorry that this was so short.   
> Secondly, I'm sorry I haven't updated in a couple of days, but I've been having a bit of a crisis at home. Because of said crisis, my financial situations has changed (It was pretty dire before but it's just gone to disastrous) and I may have to sell my laptop. That means that I don't know if I'll be able to update this even remotely regularly because my phone is crap and I can't update it on there. I'm not really sure what I'm going to do, but I have a few more days at least. I'll make sure to keep you all updated. I am going to see if I can borrow some money from friends etc. until things (hopefully) pick up, but I don't know if that's going to be possible. I know this isn't any of yours' problems, but I thought I would let you know as it may affect this fic.


	66. Chapter 66

50 hours. Alex had been missing for 50 hours. John was staring at the clock in Alex’s room, praying he would see him again.

There was a knock on the door. John stood up and opened it to reveal Joe wearing a bullet proof vest with a gun in a holster at his side.

“Joe?”

“I just want to say that I’m sorry Mr Hamilton was taken. It was on my watch and I feel awful. We’re going to try and get him back.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The President kept them on the phone for long enough to track the source of the call. It’s an abandoned house in Washington Highlands. It’s only half an hour’s drive. Idiots didn’t even try to get him out of DC, let alone the state.”

“Okay. You’re going, I take it,” said John, gesturing to the bullet proof jacket.

Joe nodded.

“Be careful. I don’t blame you by the way. I hope to see you and Alexander soon.”

“Me too, sir.”

“I’m going to hug you now. You’ve been so good to us both.”

“Okay, sir.”

John wrapped his arms over Joe’s shoulders. Joe returned the hug, if somewhat awkwardly. He then gave the agent a pat on the back and stepped back.

“Good luck, be safe.”

Joe nodded, and then he was gone. John closed the door and walked back to the bed. As he sit down, the information he had just received sunk in, and he stood up again immediately. He moved back to the door, ripped it open and ran to the kitchen. George was sitting at the breakfast bar, staring at the phone on top of it, willing it to ring.

“They’ve only just left George. They won’t call for a while.”

He looked up, startled.

“John!”

John smiled sheepishly. He hadn’t left Alex’s room other than to speak on the phone, and he felt bad for leaving George and Martha to deal with everything by themselves. As George stared at him happily, he began to feel even worse, realising that he had caused the man even more worry.

“Hi.”

“It’s good to see you out of that room. I know it’s not ringing any time soon, but I can’t just go on as usual when I know that we could have Alex back.”

“Yeah, I get it. Joe told me a minute ago, but it didn’t sink in until after he left, now I can’t stay in there. I was thinking I might head to the West Wing. I need to be around people, or I’ll go mad.”

“That’s a good idea. You don’t mind if I join you, do you?”

“Of course not. I’m going to send a text to everyone, let them know what’s happening.”

15:03  
TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Update on Alex

ElizaSchuyla: What?! Is he okay?!

MonsieurBaguette: Oui???

MissMariaLewis: Please tell me it’s good news

AndPeggy: What is it?!

IntenseAndInsane: You couldn’t have put the update in the first text?

AaronBurrSir: …?

15:04

TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: The dickwads that have him called. They’re idiots so they didn’t realise the call was being tracked. The secret service is on their way to the source of the call.

TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Also,, @Angelica, I’m on my way to your office with G. Wash

ElizaSchuyla: HOLY SHIT SO THEY MIGHT GET HIM BACK TODAY?

AaronBurrSir: Thank you for letting us know.

MonsieurBaguette: SHIT OKAY I’M COMING TO ANGELICA’S OFFICE TOO

ElizaSchuyla: ^^^ Maria and I will be there too. We’re already on the way out the door.

IntenseAndInsane: Firstly – good please all come I’m going to go mad by myself (you too Aaron if you want. We’ve never met but you were good to Alex at Columbia so)

IntenseAndInsane: Secondly – did you just call the President of the Unites States ‘G. Wash’???

AaronBurrSir: I’ll be there

TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Yeah, Aaron you’re an honorary member of the squad. If Alex gets back, he’ll want to see you too.

TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: And yes I did. I’ve fucked his son in his home multiple times. I get to call him whatever I want.

TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: I’m sorry. That was too much info. I’m slightly on edge atm. Also George says that none of you get to call him G. Wash. And that I can. But he’d rather I didn’t brag about fucking his son. He’s reading over my shoulder.

John put his phone away and coughed awkwardly.

“Sorry about that G. Wash.”

“No problem. Everyone’s a bit out of sorts right now. Just, don’t mention that in front of me again, yeah?”

“Got it.”

They stayed in silence for the rest of the walk, each lost in thought. They were only brought back to reality by the shuffling of chairs and then suffocating silence as the West Wing collectively stood to greet George. They stared at the two new arrivals with a mixture of reverence and pity.

“Sit down. I’m not your President right now.”

No one sat down. George raised an eyebrow. A young woman stepped forwards.

“If I may, sir, I don’t believe that anyone is standing because of your authority. The whole White House has been shook by the news of Mr Hamilton’s disappearance. I, and I think everyone else, stood out of solidarity and respect.”

“Oh. Well, thank you, miss…?”

“Manning, sir. Martha Manning.”

George nodded and they continued to Angelica’s office. John knocked on the door and it opened straight away.

“John!” Angelica threw her arms around John and hugged him tightly.

John winced slightly, but returned the hug, glad to see his friend. She let go fairly quickly, obviously suddenly remembering who else was there. She stepped back and let them in, closing the door behind them.

“Hello to you too, sir.”

“Good to see you Angelica. Thank you for allowing us to stay in your office.”

“Of course.”

The three of them sat down and were about to talk when there was another knock on the door. John stood to get it and was greeted by a Frenchman crushing him in a hug.

“Hey! Baguette! We want to hug him too.”

Lafayette chuckled and stepped away to let Peggy, Maria, and Eliza pull him into a group hug.

For reasons unknown to John, he started to cry. When Eliza realised she pushed him back and held him at arms’ length, one hand on each of his shoulders.

“John?”

He started to cry more.

“Oh, John? What is it, love?”

“I’m so s-sorry that I-I shut y-you all out. I-I just miss h-him so m-much.”

He was met with a chorus of ‘it’s okay’ and ‘we understand’.

George greeted the new arrivals and John sat down next to Lafayette.

The group managed to talk for about ten minutes before another knock on the door sounded.

“It’s open,” called Angelica.

Aaron Burr walked in, looking slightly shaken. John stood up and pulled Aaron into a hug.

“I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m sorry to be here, in the nicest way possible. I wish we were meeting again under different circumstances.”

“Yeah. We should get some news soon. Take a seat.”

Both men looked around to see that all seats were taken. Angelica stood up.

“Here, Aaron. Sit here. John and I will go and find something to eat from the mess for everyone. How does apples and peanut butter sound?”

“Odd choice, Ang.”

“No it’s not. We’ve gotten pieces of legislature through on apples and peanut butter,” said George.

John shrugged and followed Angelica out of the room. He was glad to get out. He much preferred the deafening silence of a room with his friends than the deafening silence of Alex’s bedroom, but it was getting a little too much. It couldn’t be long before he would get to see Alex again. That’s what he was holding on to.


	67. Chapter 67

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is quite short, but major plot development so it's fine. (I hope)   
> :)

Alex awoke to shouting. He had been knocked out by someone when he kicked a fuss after hearing John sobbing through the phone. He had no idea how long it had been. It could have been minutes, hours, or even days. His head killed, and the crashing and shouting coming from upstairs wasn’t helping. As he began to wake up more, he noticed how dry his throat was, and how hungry he was. He hadn’t felt like that since coming into the care of the Washingtons. In fact the last time he had felt so neglected was after the hurricane. The hurricane. Alex started to cough violently. He felt like he couldn’t breathe; like he was drowning all over again. But still, he couldn’t seem to die. When he eventually stopped coughing and his breathing slowed, he focused on the yelling that was still going on above him.

“BLOCK THE DOORS! HE CAN’T GO BACK! NOT UNTIL WE HAVE THE PRESIDENT’S WORD.”

Alex sat up away from the wall. He could still hear shouting, but it was accompanied by the sound of people running on the floor above him. Then there was an almighty crash followed by guns firing. Bullets ricocheted off of surfaces he couldn’t see and caused ringing in his already pounding head. For a moment, before he pieced everything together, he wished it would stop. Then he realised what was happening.

“CHECK UPSTAIRS!” That was Joe.

Alex would have sobbed if he had have been hydrated enough to do so. If Joe was here, that meant that they had tracked the call. But they were going upstairs, when he needed them to come downstairs. He only prayed that the entrance to the basement was evident.

“IT’S CLEAR. HE’S NOT UP HERE!”

“IS THERE ANYWHERE ELSE? AN ATTIC? A BASEMENT?”

 _THERE’S A BASEMENT!_ Screamed a voice in Alex’s mind. _AND I’M DOWN HERE! JOE!_

“I CAN’T SEE A HATCH TO AN ATTIC! IS THERE A DOOR DOWN THERE?”

Alex sat with baited breath as he waited for someone to find him.

“HERE!” yelled Joe.

Alex heard a door open and then a gunshot, followed by a groan, a second gunshot, and a thud. The groan came from Joe. He began to scream with the gag in his mouth. Joe had to be okay. Someone came running down the stairs and over to him.

“Mr Hamilton! It’s the secret service. I’m going to untie the blindfold and gag, but I want you to stay where you are, okay?”

Alex nodded desperately. He felt the man’s hand behind his head, undoing the gag first.

“Joe?! Is Joe okay?!” he asked wildly as soon as the gag was gone.

“He’s been shot, but he’s alive. He’s already in a stretcher being carried to a helicopter that will take him to the nearest hospital. Right now, we’re worried about you. Are you injured?”

“No, no. I’m just really fucking thirsty.”

“Okay. I’ll get this blindfold off, then we’ll get you some water. Now it’s relatively bright in here, compared to not being able to see anyway, so I would keep my eyes closed for a few seconds if I were you.”

The blindfold came away and Alex kept his eyes closed. He was glad too, because even the limited light that was shining through his eyelids hurt.

“HEY! CAN I GET ANOTHER MAN DOWN HERE? WITH WATER!”

Another pair of feet were heard climbing down the stairs and across the room. Then something was shoved into Alex’s hand. As it moved, he heard water sloshing around inside. He spilled a lot of it as he tried to drink as much of it as quickly as possible. As he drank, the light became a lot more manageable, and he dared to open his eyes. He had to blink vigorously for a few seconds before he could keep them open, but it was a huge relief to be able to see again. In front of him, there were two secret service members kneeling in front of him. There was a man, who had arrived first, and a woman who had provided the water.

“It’s good to see you again, Mr Hamilton. There are a lot of people desperate to see you again. Let’s get you home, yeah?” said the man.

“Yeah. Thank you.”

“No problem kiddo,” replied the woman, “it’s our job to keep you safe, and we promise we’ll make a better job of it from now on.”

Alex smiled, not really sure what to say, and let the man pull him to his feet. They walked up the stairs and Alex had to shield his eyes as they moved into actual daylight. So it was day.

“Hey, uh, what time is it? How long have I been gone?” “It’s half three. I imagine that by the time we get back to the White House, you’ll have been missing for fifty one hours.”

“Fifty one?! Huh.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So one of the biggest issues with the whole money thing, is that I'm supposed to be fundraising for a trip with World Challenge to Swaziland and Mozambique , and while I can still fundraise, I'm going to need to fundraise more, and quicker, because my family can't give anything anymore and I still have to pay the instalments each month. So, I was wondering, if anyone would be willing to donate? I wouldn't ask if it weren't for the fact that the expedition involves volunteering in a local community in and LEDC for a week, so it's a good cause. I was thinking like really small donations (pennies) based on the value of this fic. Or, I would be willing to write requested one shots for equally small donations? Don't feel bad if you can't/don't want to donate though!   
> If anyone does want to:   
> PayPal: catletley@gmail.com   
> Put the reason/request as the additional message thing.


	68. Chapter 68

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy

John and the others had been sitting in Angelica’s office for nearly an hour when the phone on the desk rang. George was the first to get to it. 

“Hello?” He asked hopefully. 

The rest of the occupants of the room sat in silence and John was pretty sure no one even breathed as George nodded along to what was being said. Suddenly his eyes lit up and John reached over and grabbed Eliza’s hand. The phone call lasted for a few seconds more before George placed the receiver down and turned to face the group. 

“They got him.”

The silence broke and everyone stood up excitedly. 

“Really?” asked John. 

George nodded and John let go of Eliza’s hand to surge forwards and hug the man. The others started to laugh, and then cheer, and then cry as they hugged each other. It was a sight to behold. 

“They’re in a helicopter on the way here. They should be landing on the South Lawn any minute.”

As soon as George finished his sentence, a helicopter was heard overhead. John let go of George and took off running. He was crying and ran into at least twenty people. He yelled apologies as he went but didn’t really care. He was pretty sure he had never run faster. A number of secret service personnel moved to stop him before realising who it was and what was happening. He was glad they had realised because he felt as though he might have punched anyone who got in his way. He heard the helicopter blades stop spinning as he reached a door to the South Lawn. He was pretty sure he could here other people running behind him, but he had sped off faster than anyone.

He pushed the door open and got a few more paces before Alex stepped out of the helicopter. The sight of his boyfriend alive and well winded John for a second and he had to stop to catch his breath. Then Alex looked over to where he was standing and grinned. John was running again, even faster than before. Alex moved down the helicopter stairs as quickly as he was allowed and then stood waiting for John to reach him, as the secret service members with him wouldn’t let him run. 

John was properly sobbing as he got closer and closer. He slowed down as he got to Alex, not wanting to floor the man, but the last few steps were the longest of his life. It was as if everything was in slow motion. 

And then they were hugging, pressed against each other and holding on as tight as possible, as if at any second the other could disappear again. 

“I’m so happy,” whispered John as they stepped apart eventually. 

Alex nodded his agreement, unable to speak. They were both crying.

“I love you so much, baby girl.”

Alex let out a loud, single sob and then pressed his lips against John’s. Both men melted into the kiss, pressed against each other once more. Alex moved his hand to the back of John’s head and John smiled into the kiss. It was nearly a minute before they broke apart and rested their foreheads together. 

Then there was a cough from behind John and they both looked to see George standing there, breathing heavily, with the rest of the group from Angelica’s office, including Angelica still running a few metres away. John stepped aside to allow Alex to rush into George’s arms. 

“It’s so good to have you back, son.”

Alex didn’t reply. Instead, he hugged the man harder. When the others reached them George stepped away so that he was next to John and let Alex get enveloped in a group hug. Only Aaron stayed out of the hug, waiting to greet Alex separately. Everyone was crying, even Aaron, and when the group hug finally ended and Alex spotted Aaron he pulled him into a hug of his own. 

“I’m glad you’re okay, Hamilton.”

“Thanks, Burr. It’s good to see you.”

They stepped apart and Alex looked around.”

“Where’s Martha?”

George’s brow furrowed. 

“I don’t know, I-”

“I’M HERE! I’M HERE!” 

They all turned to see Martha Washington running from a car to meet Alex. He walked towards her and was soon pulled in to yet another hug. George laughed and walked over to wrap them both in his arms. John stared at the sight happily. Then Alex made eye contact with him from the Washington sandwich, reached his arm out, and – when John took his hand – pulled him into the hug too. 

“I can’t believe I’m home. I love you all so much,” Alex whispered to the three people he cared about the most. 

Angelica, Eliza, Maria, and Peggy were in their own group hug, each thinking – unbeknownst to the others – that they wouldn’t be able to survive if any of the other three went missing. 

Lafayette and Aaron were standing next to each other, each pretending they weren’t leaning on the other for support. 

The scene stayed like that for a minute or so before one last person came running across the lawn. 

“ALEX! HAM!”

The Washington Hug™ broke apart and Alex grinned as he saw Hercules running towards him. The large man reached them quickly and, instead of hugging Alex like everyone else, gave him a really enthusiastic high five. John and Lafayette both burst into laughter whilst everyone else stared in confusion, before shrugging and moving on. 

“Okay! Let’s go inside, eh? I’ve been dying to get back in there for the last fifty one hours,” suggested Alex. 

George and Martha led the group inside and to the Oval Office. 

Alex stayed back, catching John’s hand before he could move to head inside too. 

“Hey, Laurens.”

“Hey, baby girl.” 

Alex practically shivered. 

“God I’ve missed you, you gorgeously freckled man, you.”

John laughed kindly at the words, and at the look on Alex’s face before kissing the younger man on the forehead and pulling him towards the White House


	69. Chapter 69

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a filler. Just some nice fluff and Peggy.

George strolled gleefully into the West Wing and personally invited each of the Senior Staff for dinner in the residence to celebrate Alex being back. Eliza, Maria, Peggy, Lafayette, Hercules and Burr were invited too. 

Then Alex and John walked in together and the entire West Wing erupted into cheers. It was an odd thing, Alex noted, that this side of the building lived and breathed as one chaotic being. It was an odd thing, but he loved it. 

The dinner that night was, as always, an event. George and Martha had both worked in the kitchen to prepare the food – chilli again – whilst Alex and John laid on their bed with their hands joined together and legs intertwined. They shared intermittent kisses, but it was all perfectly innocent, perfectly chaste, as they simply relished being in one another’s company once more. By the time people arrived to eat, both men were completely content and relaxed. They welcomes their friends with elated expressions and settled into a conversation with Angelica. 

“God I can’t wait ‘til Adams is back on the other side of the White House. I can’t stand the man,” admitted Angelica with an exasperated tone. “None of us can. He was only on the ticket in an attempt to avoid alienating the conservative right, but the man’s an asshole.”

“Agreed. George nearly murdered Leo when he suggested him as a running mate. I believe his exact words were ‘You can shove your bipartisanship up your ass, Leo, I refuse to have that arrogant tosser as my VP’. One of my fondest memories.”

“Fantastic! Oh! I can’t believe no one has mentioned this yet. Your boyfriend called The President ‘G. Wash’ earlier.”

“You what?” laughed Alex, turning towards the increasingly red John Laurens. 

“It was brilliant. Then he overshared and The President saw.”

“Oh my God, John, what did you say?” asked Alex with a horrified expression. 

“She’s making it sound worse than it was! I was on edge, okay? And I might have mentioned the fact that you and I have… uh..”

“Fucked. Multiple times,” supplied Angelica, winking when John glared at her. 

“Yes. Quite. And well, he read over my shoulder. He was chill with me calling him G. Wash though!” 

“You’re such a moron. I love you.”

Angelica fake-gagged. 

“That’s about as much love as I can take right now. I’m going to speak to Lafayette and Hercules because-shit.”

Alex and John turned to where Angelica was looking and promptly burst into laughter as the two men she was planning on escaping love with were now kissing. 

“I hate you both!” she said, laughing, before actually leaving to go and speak with the White House communications director and her deputy. 

“God, I love that woman,” mused Alex fondly. 

“She loves you too,” came a new voice from behind them. 

Both men turned to see Peggy Schuyler smiling at them. 

“She’s been beside herself with worry these past few days. Her and Eliza both. Maria and I were mainly worried for them, no offense,” she continued. 

“None taken. They’re your sisters. You and I hardly know each other. That, by the way, is something that I will endeavour to change,” assured Alex, feeling vaguely guilty upon hearing that Maria had been so worried about Eliza. “But, alas, for now I am going to have to leave you with my darling boyfriend whilst I go and talk to Eliza and Maria.” Alex didn’t wait for a reply before he sped across the room, high fiving a hand slyly held out by Lafayette who was still kissing Hercules as he passed, and interrupted the conversation Maria and Eliza were having. 

“Alex! I can’t tell you how glad we all are to have you back,” said Maria. 

“It’s good to be back, Miss Lewis. I hear you were awfully worried about me Betsey.”

“Betsey?!” repeated Eliza, incredulous. 

“I’m trying it out. Anyway, I appreciate your concern, and Maria thank you for looking after her and Angelica with Peggy. You are a truly wonderful person. He pulled Maria into a hug. “I also heard this has been particularly hard on you, and I think I understand why. I’m sorry,” he whispered. 

She gave him a quick squeeze and stepped away. The smile on her face told him it was all okay. Eliza’s brows were furrowed with a knowing that something had just gone one between her kind of ex and current girlfriend, but she smiled nonetheless. 

“Now, I must get back before my boyfriend bores your sister to death with facts about turtles!” Alex was only half joking. 

As it happened, he had nothing to worry about. When he got back to John and Peggy, they had been joined by Hercules and Lafayette. Alex slipped his arm around John’s waist, thus slipping himself into the conversation. John placed his arm around Alex’s shoulder as he was speaking. 

“So y’all are officially together then?” he asked, looking pointedly between Hercules and Lafayette. He blushed as he realised the alcohol had brought out his Southern accent. 

Alex kissed John on the cheek, unable to resist the adorable blush blooming there, before turning to the other two men for an answer. 

“I think so. I mean, I hope so,” replied Hercules, smiling. 

Lafayette said nothing, he just nodded at Hercules. 

“I can’t believe it. It wasn’t all that long ago that you couldn’t speak three words to the man!” laughed Alex. 

Lafayette glared and Hercules laughed. 

“Well, as the only single one here,” started Peggy, “I am going to introduce myself to the rather dashing Deputy communications director.” 

It took Peggy less than five minutes to get said member of the Senior Staff to be like putty in her hands. He was leaning against the wall, looking at her like a lovesick puppy as she told some mad story, arms gesticulating wildly. God, Alex loved his friends. 


	70. Chapter 70

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short and sweet. Also, @ Burr go get her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, can we just pretend that the timeline of all of this works perfectly, and that it totally isn't too late in the year to announce an election campaign for next year? Cool, thanks.

“It is with my second letter to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the speaker of the House of Representatives which reinstates me as your President,” George Washington took a deep breath before continuing, commanding the room and looking straight at the camera of the White House Press room, “that I announce my campaign for re-election. I will be running for a second term as President of the United States.”

The room burst to life with reporters holding their hands up for a question and camera flashes going off from all directions, and George smiled. He loved his job.

He waited for a few moments before picking anyone to ask questions.

“Danny, yes?”

“Evening, sir. Are you at all concerned about Mr Hamilton’s announcement at the gay pride in LA affecting your hopes in the upcoming campaign?”

George fought the urge to scoff. He knew that Danny had to ask the question; that it was one of the only questions everyone in the room was dying to ask, but it still felt ridiculous.

“Of course not, Danny. I am confident that the majority of the people who voted for me the last time wouldn’t change their minds because my Son is gay. I imagine that we’ve lost a lot of people since the last campaign and that’s because although I am unconscious of intentional error, I am nevertheless too sensible of my defects not to think I probable that I may have committed errors. Any supporters who have left, have left because of my administration and I, not my family. My support of the rights of the LGBT+ community has never been a secret. It played a huge part in my last campaign, and will play an even bigger part in this one.”

Hands that had gone down as he spoke shot up again.

“Lena?”

“Good evening, Mr President. Could you tell us exactly what kind of a role LGBT+ rights will be having in this campaign?”

“Not entirely, but I can tell you that I will be holding talks with Mr Chief Justice as soon as possible.” With that vaguely cryptic statement, George thanked the press corps and stepped down from the podium.

As he left the room, Alex, along with three members of the senior staff rushed over.

“Did you just not announce but technically announce your plans for a Supreme Court ruling regarding gay marriage across all 50 states?” gushed Alex, beating the other three who were ready to ask the same question.

“So what if I did?”

“So what if you did?! It’s amazing is what! Although, I don’t think you mentioned it to these guys and they’re not too happy about it,” answered Alex, gesturing awkwardly to the senior staff members.

“It’s not that we don’t want legalising gay marriage to be a huge part of the campaign, it’s just that we hadn’t sorted any of the logistics and now we need to start polling and stuff a lot sooner than we had anticipated, Mr President sir,” explained the Deputy Chief of Staff.

“Well get on it. Put a poll in the field tonight.”

“I’ve got Theodosia Bartow on it.”

Alex’s eyebrows furrowed. There couldn’t be that many Theodosias in DC, could there? He pulled his phone out of his pocket and opened his conversation with Burr.

_17:04_

_AdamSandler: Burr, is your Theodosia’s surname Bartow?_

_17:05_

_AaronBurrSir: Yes… why?_

_AdamSandler: Her name just came up. She does polling for the White House?!_

_AaronBurrSir: Among other political institutions, yes._

_17:06_

_AdamSandler: And you didn’t mention this?!_

_AaronBurrSir: I didn’t want you meddling._

_AdamSandler: You wound me, sir. I would never. Burr, you love this woman?_

_17:08_

_AaronBurrSir: Yes._

_AdamSandler: Go get her._

When Alex zoned back in to the conversation, they had moved on to another topic and he lost interest. He wanted to find John.

_17:10_

_AdamSandler: You at your desk?_

_17:11_

_TutantMeenageNeetleTeetle: Yeah._

_AdamSandler: I’m on my way_

He quietly slipped away from the conversation and walked to John’s desk.

“Hey.”

John looked up and smiled.

“Hey. So, a presidential election campaign. That should be fun.”

“Oh you’ll love it. It’s a lot of stress and late nights and early mornings and long-ass flights, but you’ll love it.”

“I’ll love it? I won’t be there for most of it,” responded John.

“Of course you will. You’re a part of the family, right? I went with him everywhere last time.”

“He’s not gonna want me trailing along, surely?”

“Babe, he loves you. He lets you call him G. Wash. Besides, he knows that I’m going, and there’s no way I’m going without you. Plus, you never know when an unexpected need for a professional photographer will arise.”

“Alright. Wow, okay. Now it really sounds like fun.”

“Yeah, and you’ll really want to be a part of this campaign.”

“Yeah, why’s that?”

“Because this is the only Presidential campaign to promise legalisation of gay marriage across all fifty states through a supreme court ruling.”

“Seriously?!”

“Seriously. And I know George, he’ll get it done. He’s done so much these last few years, but I know he was disappointed that the groundwork wasn’t there to do it in his first term.”

“Holy shit.”

“I know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love everyone who reads this fic, leaves kudos, leaves comments, and the few people who have donated money to my PayPal (which is catletley@gmail.com)   
> If you don't know why people have donated, the reason is in the end notes a few chapters back <3


	71. Chapter 71

Hello!

So, this isn't a chapter because... I've decided to end this fic here. 

BUT! Don't worry, it's not actually over, I just feel like a new campaign trail is a nice place to Segway into a sequel. 

Basically, the amount of chapters in this fic is really extra and kind of making me increasingly uncomfortable, so I'm going to continue this story, exactly where we left off, under a different fic in the same series. 

The sequel is up: http://archiveofourown.org/works/10610355/chapters/23462253

Just want to say thank-you to everyone who has read this. 

Also I would still very much appreciate any donations to my PayPal (catletley@gmail.com) or my GoFundMe (https://www.gofundme.com/c4vz3h-my-world-challenge) to fund my charity expedition to Swaziland and Mozambique next year. 

Thank you! 

Xx


End file.
